Luxembourg, 05/02/2003 (Agence Europe) - According to estimates published on 4 February by Eurostat, the volume of retail sales fell by 0.4% in the euro-zone and increased by 1% in the European Union (EU15) during November 2002 compared to November 2001. The European Communities' Statistical Office, Eurostat, points out that, compared to October 2002, sales fell by 0.5% in the euro-zone and by 0.4% in the EU15.
In annual terms (November 2002/November 2001), the retail trade in the food sector (including beverages and tobacco) increased by 1.4% in the euro-zone and by 2.0% in the EU15. The non-food sector regressed by 1.6% in the euro-zone but increased by 0.4% in the EU15. Among the non-food sectors, the textile sector (including clothing and footwear) fell by 4.4% in the euro-zone and by 1.1% in the EU15, and sales in the household appliance sector fell by 3.1% and 0.8% respectively. The strongest rates of growth were noted in the United Kingdom (5.7%), Spain (4.8%) and Sweden (4.4%). The largest falls were recorded in Germany (-4.4%), in Belgium (-1.4%) and Portugal (-1.2%).
In terms of monthly variations (November 2002/October 2002), sales in the food sector increased by 0.1% in the euro-zone and by 0.2% in the EU15. The non-food aggregate fell by 1.4% and 0.8% respectively. In the non-food sectors, there was a fall of 4.1% in textiles in the euro-zone and 2.9% in the EU15, whereas the index in the household appliance sector fell by 0.7% in the euro zone but remained stable in the EU15. The largest drops were noted in Austria (-2.6%), Portugal (-2.5%), Germany (-2.3%) and Sweden (-2.1%), while the largest increases were noted in Spain (0.7%), Belgium and the United Kingdom (each 0.4%).