In May 2025, Estonia experienced a year-on-year increase of 1.8% in retail sales, a slowdown from the previous month’s five-month high of 5.5%. Sales of food, beverages, and tobacco in specialized outlets continued to decline sharply, showing a drop of 32.4% compared to a 24.8% decrease in April. Similarly, sales for audio and video equipment, hardware, paints, glass, and electrical household appliances decreased by 3.2%, compared to a 1.6% dip in the prior month. Non-specialized store sales also fell, marking a 7.7% decline, up from a 5.7% drop.
Furthermore, there was a downturn in sales for non-specialized stores focusing on food, beverages, and tobacco, which fell by 3.9% following a 0.5% growth in April. Specialized stores selling textiles, clothing, footwear, and leather goods observed a 6.5% decline after a 2.5% increase previously. However, sales of automotive fuel in specialized stores eased, growing by 12.8% compared to an 18.3% rise in April. The growth in sales of computers, peripheral units, software, and telecommunications equipment in specialized stores also decelerated, advancing by 26.7%, down from 33.7% the preceding month. On a monthly basis, retail trade expanded by 2.9%, a moderation from April’s robust growth of 6.7%.
