According to the report from the National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT), retail sales rose by 1.7% in January after declining by 0.2% in December. This was the strongest growth since May 2022. Economists expected a further decline in sales (-0.2%).
In annual terms, retail sales growth accelerated to 6.2% from 3.4% in December. The data are expressed in value terms and are not adjusted for consumer prices, which increased 10.7% in January from the year earlier, based on Italy's EU-harmonised index (HICP). ISTAT said that sales are growing for the 23rd month in a row. Consensus estimates suggested a 2.3% increase in sales.
Meanwhile, over the three-month period (through January), retail sales increased by 1.5% compared to the previous three-month period.
The data also showed that in January, large-scale distribution grew by 8.2% compared to December. Small-scale distribution increased by 4.3% and non-store retail sales was up 6.1%. Meanwhile, online sales grew by 3.0% mom.