Real, seasonally adjusted retail sales:
September: +1.5% m/m, -3.1% y/y
MNI survey median: +0.5% m/m, -1.2% y/y
MNI survey range: +0.3% to +0.5% m/m
August: +0.1% m/m, -1.1% y/y (revised from -1.2% y/y)
FRANKFURT (MNI) – German retail sales rose three times faster in
September than even the most optimistic analysts had projected, lifting
turnover to the highest level in nearly a year, the Federal Statistical
Office reported on Wednesday.
After a modest recovery in August, sales gained an additional 1.5%
on the month in real terms to their highest level since October, but
were still 3.1% lower on the year.
In nominal terms, turnover jumped 1.9% on the month to give an
annual decline of -0.7%.
Food, drink and tobacco sales, for which only annual figures are
available, were down 3.4% , while non-food sales were 2.9% lower.
Positive turnover in October lifted the retail PMI above 50 for the
first time since July, though the reading was still below the average
for the year to date.
Expectations of steady employment and low inflation, as well as
record-low borrowing costs, kept German households in a spending mood
this month, a GfK Group survey showed.
Recent labour market developments, however, could begin to weigh on
spending-propensity in the near term. The ranks of the unemployed
continued to trend upwards in October, while payroll jobs in September
fell for the first time since the start of 2010, the Federal Labour
Office reported on Tuesday.
Looking ahead, a European Commission survey showed hiring
expectations falling in all major sectors except retail in October,
while consumers’ jobless fears fell only slightly from September’s
28-month high.
Retailers already seem more pessimistic regarding the coming
months. An Ifo institute survey showed their business expectations
falling in October to their lowest level since February 2010, as order
books continued to erode.
— Frankfurt bureau: +49-69-720-142; email: twailoo@mni-news.com —
[TOPICS: MTABLE,M$G$$$,M$X$$$,MAGDS$,M$XDS$,MT$$$$,MTABLE]
