KSH: Retail sales grow 5.6% in December

Retail sales in Hungary increased by a year-on-year 5.6% in December, accelerating slightly from 5.1% in November, preliminary calendar year-adjusted data released by the Central Statistics Office (KSH) today reveal.
According to unadjusted data, retail sales grew by 6.2%, following November’s 5.1% increase. For all of 2014, retail sales rose 5.2% according to both calendar year-adjusted and unadjusted data. The rise was slower: an adjusted 4.0% and an unadjusted 4.1% if the effect of changes in data collection, which made January-June food sales figures incomparable, were excluded.
Retail food sales rose by an adjusted 2.9% and non-food sales were up by 7.6%, both accelerating from November, while vehicle fuel sales increased by 10.7% following an 8.6% rise in November.
Whole-year food sales rose by a calendar-adjusted 4.8%, non-food sales were up by 5.4% and vehicle-fuel sales increased by 5.8%. According to the sample-based comparable figures, January-December food sales rose by a calendar-adjusted 2.3%.
KSH started using full figures provided by the state tobacco wholesaler following Hungary's introduction of a state monopoly on retail tobacco sales in the middle of 2013. For the sake of comparison, KSH has also published data from its earlier sample-based estimates.
KSH is scheduled to update the December data on February 26.
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