Retail trade - January 2018

In January 2018, seasonally adjusted sales in retail trade at constant prices increased by 0.8%, month-on-month (m-o-m). Sales adjusted for calendar effects increased by 8.2%, year-on-year (y-o-y), the same as non-adjusted.  

Seasonally adjusted sales in retail trade, except of motor vehicles and motorcycles (CZ‑NACE 47) increased by 0.8% in January at constant prices, month-on-month. Sales for sale of food increased by 2.3%, for non-food goods by 1.5%, and for automotive fuel by 0.4%.

Sales in retail trade adjusted for calendar effects (with the same number of working days in January 2018 and January 2017) increased by 8.2%, year-on-year; sales for sale of non-food goods increased by 12.0%, for automotive fuel by 7.8%, and sales for food by 3.5%¹⁾.

Non-adjusted sales in retail trade increased by 8.2%, y-o-y; sales for sale of non-food goods increased by 12.0%, for automotive fuel by 7.8%, and for food by 3.7%¹⁾.

Sale via mail order houses or via Internet (growth by 23.8%) had the highest influence on the y‑o-y growth of non-adjusted sales in retail trade. The highest sales growth was reported by retail sale of information and communication equipment in specialised stores (+30.6%). Sales increased also in specialised stores in the following: retail sale of other household equipment (+18.3%), retail sale of clothing and footwear (+8.5%), and retail sale of dispensing chemist, medical and orthopaedic goods, and cosmetic and toilet articles (+4.0%). Retail sale of food, beverages and tobacco in specialised stores increased by 4.1%. Retail sale in non‑specialised stores with food, beverages or tobacco predominating increased by 3.7%. On the contrary, lower sales were recorded by retail sale of cultural and recreation goods in specialised stores (-3.1%).

The price deflator (CZ-NACE 47) related to the corresponding period of the previous year (VAT excluded) was 100.7%. It was influenced mainly by higher prices of food, dispensing chemist, medical and orthopaedic goods, and cultural and recreation goods. On the contrary, prices decreased in retail sale of information and communication equipment in specialised stores, retail sale of clothing and footwear, and automotive fuel.

Seasonally adjusted sales for sale and repair of motor vehicles (CZ-NACE 45) decreased at constant prices by 0.1%, m-o-m. In the year-on-year comparison, sales increased by 0.9% (both adjusted and not adjusted for calendar effects). Sales for repair of motor vehicles increased by 3.7%, y-o-y, and sales for sale of motor vehicles (including spare parts) increased by 0.2%, y‑o‑y.

International comparison of retail sales development in the EU Member States is available at: http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/short-term-business-statistics/publications/news-releases.

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Starting from the News Release with results for January 2018, a base period for short-term statistics changed. Besides the change of the base period at fixed-base indices (that are newly compared to the average of the year 2015 instead of the average of the year 2010), also the weighting scheme of the year 2015 was used. In relation to the transition to the new base period, also a revision of the year 2017 was made.

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¹⁾ The difference in the development of adjusted and non-adjusted sales for sale of food with the same number of working days was mainly due to a different number of above-average and average days in terms of volumes of sales.