Retail Trade - August 2012

In August, sales in retail trade including automotive segment after seasonal adjustment increased by 0.1% at constant prices, month-on-month. Working days adjusted sales decreased by 0.8%, year-on-year, the same as non-adjusted. The y-o-y drop of sales was influenced mainly by the development of sale in the automotive segment.

After seasonal adjustment sales in retail trade including sale and repair of motor vehicles increased by 0.1% at constant prices in August, m-o-m; working days adjusted sales decreased by 0.8%, year-on-year, the same as non-adjusted sales. The y-o-y drop at the same number of working days in August 2012 and August 2011 was influenced by lower sale in the automotive segment; growth in retail trade, on the contrary, contributed to slackening of the decrease (see Table 2).

Seasonally adjusted sales for sale and repair of motor vehicles (CZ-NACE 45) decreased by 1.3% at constant prices, m-o-m; in the year-on-year comparison, sales adjusted for working days as well as non-adjusted decreased by 4.7%. Non-adjusted sales for sale of motor vehicles (including spare parts) decreased by 4.9%, y-o-y, and for the repair of motor vehicles by 3.4%.

In retail sale including sale of automotive fuel (CZ-NACE 47) seasonally adjusted sales at constant prices increased by 0.7%, m-o-m, and sales adjusted for working days by 0.8%, y-o-y, the same as non-adjusted. Growth was recorded at sale of non-food goods by 1.4% and automotive fuel by 1.1%, while sale of food dropped by 0.3%.

Sales in retail sale via mail order houses or via Internet increased the most (+8.0%). The following contributed to the overall increase: increase in retail sale of clothing, footwear and leather goods in specialised stores (+6.8%), retail sale of information and communication equipment in specialised stores (+4.0%), cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores (+3.9%), retail sale of dispensing chemist, medical and orthopaedic goods, cosmetic and toilet articles in specialised stores (+2.0%). After long-term decrease, sale of automotive fuel grew already for the second successive month although there was a relatively high base for comparison (August was the only month of 2011, in which sales were increasing, year-on-year). On the contrary, in retail sale of other household equipment in specialised stores sales dropped (-1.5%), drop of food sale continued both in specialised and non-specialised stores (-1.2% and -0.2%, respectively).

The price deflator (CZ-NACE 47) related to the corresponding period of the previous year (VAT excluded) was 101.2% and it was influenced mainly by higher prices of automotive fuel and food. On the contrary, cutting of prices continued in retail sale of information and communication equipment in specialised stores.

International comparison of retail sales development in the EU Member States is available at: ( http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/portal/page/portal/eurostat/home).


Notes:
Data for August 2012 are preliminary; final data for all months of 2012 will be available in June 2013 at the latest.
Responsible head at the CZSO: Marie Boušková, phone number (+420) 274 052 935, e-mail: marie.bouskova@csu.gov.cz
Contact person: Marcela Mašátová, phone number (+420) 274 052 681, e-mail: marcela.masatova@csu.gov.cz
Method of data acquisition: direct survey of the CZSO (SP1-12)
End of data collection: 26 September 2012
End of data processing: 2 October 2012
Related outputs: Base and y-o-y indices from 2000 and 2001 are available in time series ( /sales_indices_monthly_retail_trade_hotels_and_restaurants_time_series )
Next News Release will be published on: 5 November 2012