It was the third consecutive month of growth and the highest since January, as sales rebounded for food, alcoholic beverages, and tobacco (1.2% vs -0.5% in November) and sharply grew for non-food products (6.3% vs 2.2%). Meanwhile, sales for automotive fuel in specialized stores dropped further (-6.3% vs -3.1%).
On a monthly basis, retail activity rose 0.3% in December, decelerating from a 0.5% increase in the previous month. A separate report from the Vilnius-based statistics office showed that the country's industrial production dropped 7.4% year-on-year in December, slipping further from an upwardly revised 3.5% fall in the previous month. It marked the second period of declining industrial activity as output sharply decreased for three of the four main components namely, electricity, gas, steam and air c onditioning supply.
On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, industrial output sank 1.5%, down from a 1.3% drop in November.
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