Retail sales in the Netherlands experienced a significant 5% increase in July 2025 compared to the same month the previous year, enhancing an upwardly revised 3.4% growth recorded in June. This development marked the thirteenth month of continuous expansion in retail activity and represented the most robust growth rate since September 2023. The increase was driven by higher sales of both food products, which rose by 5.2% compared to 3.3% in June, and non-food products, growing by 4.9% versus 3.5% the previous month. Additionally, online trade maintained a strong upward trend with a 6.2% increase, slightly down from 6.6%.
Gains in the food sector were chiefly attributed to supermarkets, which saw sales surge by 6.3%, up from 3.5% in June, whereas specialty food shops saw a decline, dropping to -2% from a previous growth of 2.1%. The non-food sector also exhibited improvements, with notable contributions from clothing sales, which increased by 2.2% compared to 0.7%, footwear sales jumping to 8.9% from a marginal 0.1%, and DIY, kitchen, and flooring sales rising by 4.7% against a previous 3.6%.
On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, retail sales advanced by 1.6% in July, which follows a revised 0.2% increase recorded in the preceding month.
