Retail sales in the euro area declined more than expected

The European Union’s statistical office, Eurostat, said on Friday that retail sales fell 3.1 percent month-on-month. Experts expected a more modest decline of 1.2 percent compared to March, when they registered a further 3.3 percent increase.

Year-on-year, growth was significant at 23.9 percent, but still fell short of the expected 25.5 percent, but exceeded 13.1 percent in March. (MTI)