Fall In Retail Sales in Germany

According to preliminary data from Germany's Federal Statistics Office, retail sales fell by 1.6% month-on-month in real terms in February and also fell 0.3% on an annual basis.

 Despite a steady two-year improvement in the
labour market and robust wage deals secured by German unions in
recent months, retail spending in Europe's largest economy has failed
to pick up, posting drops in four out of the last five months.
Soaring food and energy costs are largely to blame. Annual inflation
in Germany accelerated to 3.2% in March. The figures released today
showed that food, drink and tobacco sales slumped 4.1% in real terms
in February compared with the prior year.