Sales growth edged up for food & non-alcoholic beverages (3.7% vs 3.6% in September), with trade increasing 14.6% (vs 15.8%) in specialized stores and 3.4% (vs 4.0%) in non-specialized stores.

Moreover, sales accelerated for non-food products (4.5% vs 3.1%), prompted by higher sales from specialized stores (5.6% vs 3.4%). In contrast, trade of automotive fuel continued to decline (-8.3% vs -8.1%).

On a monthly comparison basis, retail sales grew 0.9%, following a downwardly revised 0.4% fall in September.