IMPROVING LIVES THROUGH DATA ECOSYSTEMS

Measured in real terms (constant 2015 prices), retail trade sales decreased by 2,7% year-on-year in September 2020. Negative annual growth rates were recorded for:

·            all ‘other’ retailers (-27,2%);

·            retailers in textiles, clothing, footwear and leather goods (-7,8%); and

·            retailers in pharmaceuticals and medical goods, cosmetics and toiletries (-4,1%).

The negative contributors to the 2,7% decrease were:

·            all ‘other’ retailers (contributing -3,5 percentage points);

·            retailers in textiles, clothing, footwear and leather goods (contributing -1,2 percentage points); and

·            retailers in pharmaceuticals and medical goods, cosmetics and toiletries (contributing -0,3 of a percentage point).

Seasonally adjusted retail trade sales increased by 1,1% in September 2020 compared with August 2020. This followed month-on-month changes of 4,0% in August 2020 and 0,6% in July 2020. In the third quarter of 2020 seasonally adjusted retail trade sales increased by 23,9% compared with the second quarter of 2020.

Retail trade sales decreased by 5,1% in the third quarter of 2020 compared with the third quarter of 2019. The main negative contributors to this decrease were:

·           all ‘other’ retailers (-32,8% and contributing -4,3 percentage points); and

·           retailers in textiles, clothing, footwear and leather goods (-9,9% and contributing -1,7 percentage points).