Decline continuing

Revenues of retail stores continued to decline in August 2007. Total sales were 3.6 per cent down compared to August 2006. According to KSH data, the volume of retail sales dropped by 0.1 per cent compared to the preceding month. The total value of retail sales in the first eight months of 2007 amounted to HUF 3,862 billion. Food and FMCG sales accounted for 50.4 per cent of the total. Food and FMCG sales continued to decline in August, showing a drop of 2 per cent compared to the same month in 2006. Mixed profile stores recorded a 1.9 per cent drop in revenues, while the same amounted to 3 per cent in specialised stores. Food and FMCG sales were 0.4 per cent down in August compared to July. Sales of non-food categories showed a drop of 4.9 per cent compared to the preceding year. According to an Eurostat estimate, retail sales showed an average increase of 2.6 per cent in the EU-27 countries, with Latvia and Poland showing the most dynamic growth.