Retail sales in May rose by 5.8 percent year on year after adjusting for calendar effects, in April, according to revised data, they grew by 7.2 percent. In a month-on-month comparison, traders earned 7.3 percent more. The Czech Statistical Office (CZSO) reports. Retail sales were positively affected by the easing of anti-epidemic measures, thanks to which all stores were able to open in mid-May after more than four months of forced closure due to a pandemic.
Excluding adjustments, retail sales in the fifth month were up 8.1 percent year-on-year, with sales rising mainly for non-food goods and fuels and, as in April, rising the most for clothing and footwear. “The only non-food assortment that recorded a decrease in sales was sports, cultural and recreational goods. Last year, sales of sports and recreational equipment grew significantly, which was not so much repeated this year. Although customers returned to brick-and-mortar stores, online sales maintained a growing trend, “said Marie Boušková, Director of the CZSO Services Statistics Department, adding that for the third month in a row, it also showed high year – on – year growth and car sales.
Specifically, clothing and footwear stores recorded a year-on-year increase in sales of 41.1 percent. From other specialized stores with non-food goods, sellers of computers, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals or household products were successful. Sales of computer retailers increased by almost 17 percent compared to last May, with cosmetic products by 14 percent and with pharmaceutical and medical goods by almost ten percent. On the other hand, specialized stores with products for culture, sports and recreation had sales lower by 2.6 percent year on year.
Traders earned more year-on-year for food in all types of stores. They were six percent higher in specialized stores and 1.6 percent higher in non-specialized stores with a predominance of food, statistics said.
According to them, double-digit sales growth was maintained by sales of goods via the Internet or mail order services. In May, these sales were 15.6 percent higher year-on-year.
Sales and repairs of motor vehicles increased by calendar-adjusted sales by 34 percent year-on-year. Unadjusted was up 43.6 percent year-on-year, of which sales of cars, including spare parts, increased by 47.7 percent and sales of cars by 28.4 percent. Seasonally adjusted sales and repairs of vehicles fell by 1.3 percent month-on-month.