Italian retail sales grow year-on-year in November

Italian retail trade data for the month of November was released today. The official statistical office, ISTAT, showed that the estimates of retail trade continued to fall sequentially in the month, dropping 0.2 percent in value terms and by 0.3 percent in terms of volume. The underlying pattern in the retail sector indicates a contraction in the three months to November 2019, when both value and volume dropped 0.1 percent.

On a year-on-year basis, retail trade in terms of value and volume rose for the sixth straight month in November by 0.9 percent and 0.7 percent, respectively. Total sales of large scale distribution rose 3.3 percent year-on-year, while small scale distribution dropped 1.4 percent. Online sales continued to grow, rising 4.1 percent year-on-year in November.

Looking at the value of sales for non-food products, the largest growths were seen in cosmetic and toilet articles, which rose 3.8 percent, and in furniture and textile items and household furnishings, which grew 2.2 percent. Meanwhile, the biggest falls were seen in pharmaceutical products and optical instruments and photographic equipment, which fell 2.7 percent and 1.2 percent, respectively.