The retail trade turnover in Romania increased by 11.1% in January 2018 compared to the same month of last year, according to the National Statistics Institute (INS).

The growth was mainly supported by the non-food retail, which increased by 16.7%. Fuel sales went up by 8% and food sales grew by 7.5% year-on-year.

When compared to December 2017, the retail trade turnover went down by 25.3%, but this evolution is normal as consumption always peaks around the holidays in December and then drops in January. Thus, Romanians spent less on non-food items (-29.5%), on food (-24.7%), and fuel (-17.7%).

In seasonally adjusted terms, the retail trade turnover was down by 0.9% in January versus December, due to a 1.8% drop in non-food sales and 1.2% decline in fuel sales, while food sales were just 0.1% lower.

editor@romania-insider.com