Press Release 04/06/2013
The sales index of the services sector of the Basque Country dropped by 3.8% in the first quarter of 2013
Trade dropped by 3.4% and other services were down 6.7%
The sales index for the services sector of the Basque Country registered a 3.8% nominal drop in sales in the first quarter of 2013 compared to the same period of the previous year, according to Eustat data.
Compared to the previous quarter, the sales index was down a nominal 0.5%, once any seasonal effects had been eliminated.
By sectors, the trade sales index was down 3.4% in nominal terms in the first quarter of 2013, whilst for other services, which form part of the index, it was down 6.7% with regards to the same period of 2012.
Within trade the Sale & Repair of Motor Vehicles sector stood out for negative reasons, registering a nominal downturn of 8.4%. Wholesale Trade registered a fall of 0.9% and Retail Trade dropped by 2.3%.
There were drops of varying magnitudes in all sectors of other services. The largest decreases were produced in the Administrative Activities and Auxiliary Services sector, with a drop of 10.8%, in Hotel Management & Catering, with a decrease of 10.4% and in Information and Communications there was a negative result of 8.1%. In Professional, Scientific and Technical Activities the fall experienced was 5.4%, and in Transport and Storage the drop was 2.8%.
By province, the biggest drop of the sales index occurred in Bizkaia, where it was down 5.1%; in Álava it was down 3.5% and in Gipuzkoa it fell by 1.7%.
In real terms, sales in the services sector fell by 6.5% in the first quarter, once the price effect had been eliminated
In Trade, the sales index was down by 4.2% and in other services the decrease was 9.0%, with regard to the same quarter of 2012 and in constant terms.
The year-on-year evolutions within Trade were negative for all sectors: the Sale & Repair of Motor Vehicles was down by 8.9%, the Retail trade sales index fell by 5.5% and the Wholesale trade sales index fell by 2.3%.
In the sections of other services, the sales index of both the Hotel Management & Catering and the Administrative Activities and Auxiliary Services sectors registered a 13.0% drop in constant euros. Furthermore, the Information & Communications sector was down by 10.0%, the Transport & Storage sales index was down by 6.9% and in Professional, Scientific & Technical Activities it dropped by 6.6%.
The index of employed people in the services sector in the Basque Country in the first quarter of 2013 was down by 0.7% on the fourth quarter of 2012.
For further information:
Eustat - Euskal Estatistika Erakundea / Instituto Vasco de Estadística
C/ Donostia-San Sebastián, 1 01010 Vitoria-Gasteiz
Press Service: servicioprensa@eustat.eus Tel: 945 01 75 62
Press releases on the Internet on the Conjunctural Services Index of the Basque Country (ICS)
Databank on the Conjunctural Services Index of the Basque Country (ICS)