Retail sales in Eurozone during the month of June held steady, following increased consumer appetite for purchase of discretionary items amid drop in fuel purchases.
Eurozone retail sales, a proxy indicator for household spending, remained flat m/m in June, largely in line with market consensus; however, it rose 1.6 percent y/y, dripping below the 1.7 percent expected rise by market participants, data released by Eurozone showed Wednesday.
The halt in retail sales growth in June came after the year's highest monthly rise in May, when consumers spent 0.4 percent more than in the previous month. Monthly retail sales of fuel in June recorded a 1.3 percent fall, the sharpest so far this year.
Moreover, in June, consumers increased 0.3 percent of their spending on non-food products, a category including textiles, computer equipment and electronic appliances, showing a growing interest in buying non-essential products, after a 0.1 percent rise in May.
In addition, sales of drinks, food and tobacco products went up 0.1 percent in June, slowing down from the 0.6 percent increase in May. Meanwhile, among the largest euro zone economies, retail sales on a monthly basis fell in Germany by 0.1 percent and in France by 0.4 percent, while rising markedly in Spain by 1.0 percent.
