Tuesday January 8, 12:36 PM
Eurozone retail sales weaker than expected in November
BRUSSELS (AFP) - Retailers in the countries using the euro saw sales slip in November (Frankfurt: A0S9N7 - news) despite expectations for an increase in the run-up to the key holiday season, official EU data released Tuesday showed.
The volume of retail trade in the eurozone slumped O.5 percent in November from October and dropped 1.4 percent over 12 months, the European Union's Eurostat data agency said.
The result fell short of economists' expectations for retail sales to rise 0.5 percent over one month and by 0.3 percent over one year, as polled by Thomson Financial.
The data did not include figures for eurozone heavyweights Germany and Italy as well as Greece, Ireland and the Netherlands.
The Mediterranean islands of Cyprus and Malta joined the eurozone at the start of the year, swelling the ranks of the bloc to 15 members.
Retail sales in the 27-nation EU as a whole fell 0.2 percent in November over October and increased 0.9 percent over a year.
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