Press Release 03/08/2021

RETAIL TRADE INDEX (ICIm). II/2021

Retail sector sales in the Basque Country grow by 16.1% in the second quarter of 2021

The retail sales balance for the first half of 2021 registers growth of 7.4%

The retail sector in the Basque Country increased sales by 16.1% in the second quarter of 2021 compared to the same quarter of the previous year, after calendar adjustment and at constant prices, according to data prepared by Eustat. Sales in the sector, excluding service stations, also increased by 14.5% compared to the second quarter of 2020. With these trends, the cumulative value for the first six months of the year posted growth of 7.4%.

Compared to the previous quarter, after seasonal adjustment, the sales index for the second quarter of 2021 fell by 0.5%.

By sectors, compared to the second quarter of 2020, after price and calendar adjustment, sales of Other products increased by 42.2% during the second quarter of 2021, while those of Automotive Fuel rose by 37.6%. For sales of Food, the opposite was true, with a drop of 5,7%. It should be borne in mind that on 14 March 2020 a state of emergency was decreed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, which meant retail trade sector activity changed significantly.

Compared to the first quarter of 2021, after seasonal adjustment and at constant prices, Food sales fell by 1.9%. Sales of Automotive fuel and Other products also fell, to a lesser extent, by 0.7% and 0.2%, respectively.

Within the Food retail trade, at constant prices and after calendar adjustment, Specialised trade in food, beverages and tobacco (establishments such as greengrocers, butchers and fishmongers) increased by 2.3% in relation to the second quarter of 2020. By contrast, retail trade that is Non-specialised with food, beverages and tobacco predominating (primarily supermarkets and hypermarkets), decreased by 9.1%.

In retail trade in Other Products, at constant prices and after calendar adjustment, sales rose in every case in the second quarter of 2021 compared to the same quarter of the previous year. Thus, specialised trade in Household goods which includes, among others, domestic appliances, furniture and telecommunications equipment, rose by 60.9% and specialised retail trade in Other consumer goods (books, stationary items, toys and sports items, for example), increased by 40.2%. In addition, sales of products at outlets in the Non-specialised and Specialised in personal goods categories rose by 33.9% and 30.8%, respectively.

The sales index for the second quarter of 2021 registered a year-on-year increase in every province: 19.3% in Gipuzkoa, 14.8% in Bizkaia and 13.5% in Álava. By contrast, month-on-month performance was negative in all three provinces: Álava and Gipuzkoa fell by 0.9% and Bizkaia dropped by 0.1%.

The number of people employed in the retail trade sector in the whole of the Basque Country in the second quarter of 2021 rose 1.0% in relation to the second quarter of the previous year. There was also a increase compared to the first quarter of 2021 (1.6%).

NOTE:

Included as persons employed considered in this and other short-term indices, are those covered by an ERTE (Temporary Labour Force Adjustment Plan), following the definition of persons employed indicated by the Statistical Office of the European Union (Eurostat) in its manual Methodology of Short Term Business Statistics.

The models used in the correction of calendar effects and deseasonalisation of the series include the effect of COVID-19 on the variables studied, following the recommendations of the Statistical Office of the European Union (Eurostat) in its methodological note Guidance on Time Series Treatment in the context of the COVID-19 crisis.

Eustat would like to thank all the establishments that have collaborated with gathering information. As a result, the index for the first quarter was calculated with 94.7% coverage of the sample – whose information was collected during July.

For further information:

Eustat - Euskal Estatistika Erakundea / Basque Statistics Institute C/ Donostia-San Sebastián, 1 01010 Vitoria-Gasteiz Press Service: servicioprensa@eustat.es Tel.: 945 01 75 62