South Africa's retail sales dropped unexpectedly in February, data from Statistics South Africa showed on Wednesday.
Retail sales fell 0.9 percent year-on-year in February, after a 7.7 percent increase in January. Economists had forecast a 1.1 percent growth.
The largest contribution came from retailers in hardware, paint and glass, and food, beverages and tobacco products in specialized stores.
On a month-on-month basis, retail sales decreased 0.5 percent in February, after a 2.3 percent growth in the previous month.
In the three months ended in February, retail sales increased 3.6 percent, after a 4.7 percent rise in the preceding three months.
