Press Release 08/02/2017
Sales in the retail trade sector of the Basque Country dropped by 0.1% in the fourth quarter of 2016
There was an accumulated increase of 1.5% in retail trade sales for the year overall, in real terms
The retail trade sector of the Basque Country registered a 0.1% drop at constant prices in the fourth quarter of 2016 with regards to the same period of the previous year, according to data provided by Eustat. Sales in the sector, not including service stations, were down by 0.3% in year-on-year terms.
With respect to the previous quarter, the sales index was down 1.0% in real terms, once any seasonal effects had been eliminated.
By sector, food products registered a fall of 0.4% in sales in the fourth quarter of 2016, retail trade of other products registered a 0.3% drop and sales of automotive fuel increased by 3.0%, all with regards to the same period in 2015 and once the price effect had been discounted.
In the retail food sector, specialised trade was down by 2.6%, as non-specialised trade in mainly food products rose by 0.7%.
In retail trade of other products, there was a positive variation in the non-specialised trade in mainly other products, with a 3.8% increase. The sector specialising in personal equipment was down by 2.6%, household equipment experienced a decrease of 2.2%, and the sector specialising in other consumer goods fell by 0.1%, all at constant prices.
By province, increases were registered in Álava, where retail trade sales overall were up by 1.5%, and in Gipuzkoa, where they rose 0.2%, whereas Bizkaia saw a 0.7% decrease, all in real terms. Compared to the previous quarter, there were decreases in sales in the three provinces: Gipuzkoa saw a decrease of 1.9%, in Bizkaia it was down by 0.7% and they dropped 0.1% in Álava.
The number of people employed in the retail trade sector in the Basque Country overall in the fourth quarter of 2016 was up by 0.2% on the third quarter of 2016.
Annual balance 2016
There was an accumulated increase of 1.5% in retail trade sales for the year overall, in real terms. If service stations are excluded, other retail trade sales rose by 1.5%, in the accumulated data of 2016 with regards to 2015.
By province, the best results were registered in Gipuzkoa, with an increase of 1.9% in the year overall, followed by Bizkaia, where there was a rise of 1.3%, and then Álava, where the increase was 1.2%, at constant prices.
The rise in employment in the retail trade sector in 2016 compared to the average of the previous year was 0.8% in the Basque Country.
For further information:
Eustat - Euskal Estatistika Erakundea / Instituto Vasco de Estadística
C/ Donostia-San Sebastián, 1 01010 Vitoria-Gasteiz
Press Service: servicioprensa@eustat.eus Tlf: 945 01 75 62
Further press releases on the retail trade index (ICIm) of the Basque Country
Retail trade index (ICIm) of the Basque Country databank