Retail trade sales at constant (2008) prices for January were expected to increase to 7.5% y/y according to a survey of leading economists by I-Net Bridge.
Forecasts among the nine economists ranged from 4.5% to 9.2%.
Measured in real terms (constant 2008 prices), seasonally adjusted retail trade sales growth fell 0.6% in January compared with December.
This followed month-on-month changes of 1.4% in December and -0.1% in November.
In terms of the 3.9% y/y growth in January, the highest annual growth rate was recorded for general dealers, with 5.7%; retailers in hardware, paint and glass, with 5.4%; and retailers in pharmaceutical and medical goods, cosmetics and toiletries, with 5.2%.
In real terms, retail trade for the three months ended January 2012 reflected an increase of 6.9% compared with the three months ended January 2011.
The largest contributors to the 6.9% increase were general dealers, with 7.0% and contributing 2.6 percentage points; retailers in textiles, clothing, footwear and leather goods, with 8.3% and contributing 1.9 percentage points; and all other retailers, with 6.6% and contributing 0.8 of a percentage point.
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