Retail sales in February continued to decline, which makes it unlikely for a positive contribution to first quarter GDP. This suggests that there may be weakness in the economy and no strong rebound in growth is expected.

Retail trade volume down by 0.8% in the euro area and by 0.9% in the EU

Retail sales volume has declined since peaking above pre-pandemic levels and has fallen to levels well below. The decline accelerated in 2022 and there is no break from the trend yet. The spike in the value of retail sales last year due to inflation has now plateaued.

Sales figures for February were disappointing in all five major markets, with Germany and France experiencing the biggest drops of -1.3% and -1.5% respectively. This suggests that consumers are still struggling with high inflation and an uncertain economic future, despite a slight improvement in confidence levels. Although there has been a slight uplift in consumer sentiment, it remains at levels typically associated with an economic recession.

Although surveys such as PMI and Ifo showed a positive outlook for the economy in the first quarter, there has been no concrete evidence from actual sales data to support this. Unless there is a significant increase in March, retail sales are likely to decrease in the first quarter. However, it is important to note that retail sales may not accurately reflect the state of the economy as services have been performing well and there is a potential for increased production activity. Despite this, the current retail sales figures do not suggest a strong economic recovery.