Retail sales in Germany fell more than expected in January this year as the COVID-19-induced lockdown and the withdrawal of a temporary cut in sales tax hit consumer spending. Retail sales fell by 4.5 percent in the month in real terms after an upwardly revised decline of 9.1 percent in December, according to data from the Federal Statistics Office.

“This decline can be explained by the ongoing coronavirus lockdown, which meant a closure of many retail stores since December 16, 2020,” the statistics office said.

 

Fashion retail sales plunged by 76.6 percent year-on-year (YoY), while sales of groceries were up by 4.3 percent YoY as supermarkets and convenience stores remained open.

 

Online retailers continued to benefit from shifting consumer habits with sales up 31.7 percent, a global newswire reported.

 

The current lockdown measures are in place until at least March 7.

 

Source: fibre2fashion.com