Swedish retail sales rise above expectations in November, trend remains sluggish

Swedish retail sales rose in the month of November; however, the trend continues to be sluggish. Sequentially, retail sales were up 0.8 percent and rose 1.1 percent year-on-year. The outcome was slightly above consensus expectations.

The rise in November retail sales eases some downside risks to projections for household consumption, but the overall scenario is however a soft trend for household demand, noted Nordea Bank in a research report.

For example, retail sales continue to be below levels seen at the start of the year, in spite of the rise in November. Households’ hesitance is probably because of the uncertainty compared to the housing market.

“The Riksbank has revised down its forecast for household consumption but is still too optimistic, we think”, said Nordea Bank.