FX.co ★ Hungary Retail Sales Rise by Most in 8 Months

In December 2025, Hungary experienced a 3.5% year-over-year growth in retail sales, marking an acceleration from the 2.5% increase observed in the previous month. This represents the most significant growth since April, primarily fueled by a quicker uptick in automotive fuel sales, which rose by 1.7% compared to the 0.7% increase in November. Conversely, growth in food stores decelerated to 2.1% from 2.6%, as did non-food shops, which saw a rise of 4.3% compared to 4.6% previously. Notably, sales in cosmetics slowed to 11.0% from 14.1%, while mail-order and online sales dropped significantly to 2.8% from 11.0%. On a seasonally adjusted basis, monthly retail trade grew by 0.2%, building on a 0.1% increase seen in December. Over the entire year of 2025, retail sales rose by 2.9%, surpassing the 2.6% growth experienced in 2024.