Retail sales in Switzerland saw a consistent decline for the sixth consecutive month in December. This downhill trend was attributed to a drop in demand for both food and non-food items, according to the data released by the Federal Statistical Office.
In December, the sales, with adjustments made for sales days and holidays, witnessed a decrease of 0.8 percent in comparison to the previous year. This contraction in sales comes in the wake of a revised drop of 1.5 percent in November.
Sales concerning food, beverages, and tobacco reported a 1.1 percent annual decrease in December. Simultaneously, non-food items experienced a 0.7 percent drop, as mentioned by the Federal agency.
Also, retail sales, excluding those from service stations, noted a decline of 0.7 percent relative to the previous year. During December, retail sales fell by a seasonally adjusted margin of 0.6 percent, following a slight recovery of 0.2 percent a month earlier.
The report suggested a slight rise in nominal retail sales by 0.1 percent on an annual basis, whereas the monthly sales for December observed a 0.6 percent contraction.
Considering the data for the entire year of 2023, the overall retail sales fell by 2.0 percent in real terms as compared to the previous year, 2022.
