The sales of electro-IT distributors and retailers in Romania are on an upward trend, partly thanks to the expansion of e-commerce, according to an analysis by market research firm KeysFin, which projects a 7.5% rise in total sales to RON 36 billion (EUR 7.6 bln) this year.

The growth is expressed in local currency, nominal terms subject to a headline inflation of around 4%. Moreover, the sales figure reflects the combined turnover reported by electro-IT distributors and retailers, which is higher than the actual value of the products Romanians buy in a year (some EUR 3.4 billion in 2018, according to GfK estimates).

Last year, the sales of electro-IT distributors and retailers increased by 8% over 2017 and 37.6% compared to 2014, according to KeysFin. The biggest companies in this sector by turnover in 2018 were Samsung Electronics Romania (RON 4.6 billion, 13.5% of the total), Dante International - eMAG (RON 4.2 bln, 12.5% of the total), and Altex Romania (RON 3.6 bln, 10.5% of the total).

The sector included 5,168 companies in 2018, out of which ten large companies, 56 medium companies, 397 small companies, and 4,705 micro enterprises based on their declared activity. The largest share of the turnover was generated by large companies - about 54% of the total turnover.

Notably, the aggregated turnover of the companies (market size) under KeysFin methodology is not reported on a consolidated basis, or in retail price terms. Thus, the research firm estimates the market at RON 33.5 bln (EUR 7.2 bln) last year, compared to EUR 3.4 bln reported by GfK Temax report that reports the market size in consolidated terms.

editor@romania-insider.com

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