ZAGREB, 4 May 2022 - Retail trade in the European Union and the euro area in March fell slightly reflecting a decrease in fuel sales whereas in Croatia it increased strongly, the latest Eurostat report released on Wednesday indicates.

In March, the seasonally adjusted volume of retail trade decreased by 0.2% in the EU and by 0.4% in the euro area compared with February, when it increased by 0.3% and 0.4% respectively.

The volume of retail trade in the EU and euro area dropped the most at petrol stations, by 3% and 2.9% respectively.

The retail sale of non-food products also decreased, by 0.7% in the EU and 1.2% in the euro area.

An increase in the volume of retail trade was reported only for food products, beverages and tobacco, of 0.6% in the EU and 0.8% in the euro area.

Among the Member States for which data are available, the highest increases were observed in Slovenia (+11.4%), Latvia (+11.1%), and Hungary (+7.3%).

Croatia registered a month-on-month increase in the volume of retail trade of 4.0%, the strongest increase since November 2020. In February it increased by 0.8%.

The largest monthly decreases in the total retail trade volume were registered in Spain (-4.0%), Luxembourg (-3.3%) and France (-1.9%).

The highest year-on-year increases in the total retail trade volume were registered in Slovenia (+25.6%), Estonia (+18.4%) and Malta (+16.4%).

The largest decreases were observed in Denmark (-11.0%), Spain (-4.8%), and Belgium (-3.9%).

The volume of retail trade in Croatia in March increased by 5.5% year on year after a 0.7% decrease in February.

Romania registered a similar increase in the volume of retail trade, of 5.4%.

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ZAGREB, 28 May 2021 - In April 2021, the retail trade turnover went up for the third consecutive month at the highest rate since the Croatian Bureau of Statistics (DZS) has been following this data, which indicates the continued recovery of consumption and the entire economy.

The DZS said on Friday the working-day adjusted retail trade turnover in April 2021 was 2.1% lower than in March 2021 in real terms, while increasing 34.4% on the year.

April 2021 was the third straight month that consumption increased year on year after falling for 11 in a row due to the pandemic, while the 34.4% jump was the highest since 2006.

In April 2021, the retail trade turnover of food, beverages and tobacco increased by 12% year on year, while the retail trade turnover of non-food products (except of automotive fuels and lubricants) increased by 69.5%.

In the first four months of 2021, retail trade turnover went up 12% on the year.

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ZAGREB, 12 April, 2021 - The volume of retail trade in the EU rose in February 2021 the most in Belgium, Austria and Croatia, while on average Europeans shopped less, shows a Eurostat report released on Monday.

In February 2021, the volume of retail trade in the EU dropped by 2.2% compared to February 2020. In January it was down 4.5%.

The euro area, too, saw a year-on-year drop in the volume of retail trade of 2.9%, after a 5.2% drop in January.

In both the EU and the euro area the volume of retail trade dropped the most for automotive fuels, by 11.9% and 13% respectively.

The volume of retail trade for non-food products dropped significantly as well, by 4% in the EU and by 5.5% in the euro area, the exception being the volume of trade for mail and internet orders, which jumped by 37.9% in the EU and by 37.3% in the euro area.

In February Europeans bought more only food, drinks and tobacco products, as evidenced by a year-on-year increase of the volume of retail trade of 1.8% in the EU and 1.9% in the euro area.

Belgium, Austria, Croatia report highest increases

Among the countries whose statistics were available to Eurostat, Portugal saw the biggest year-on-year drop in the volume of retail trade, of 15.4%.

It was followed by Slovakia and Malta with declines of 14.7% and 8.9% respectively.

The biggest year-on-year increase in the volume of retail trade was reported by Belgium, of 11%, followed by Austria, with an increase of 5.2% and Croatia, an increase of 5.1%.

In January 2021 Croatia saw a year-on-year 0.9% increase in the volume of retail trade.

Signs of recovery

The seasonally-adjusted volume of retail trade in the EU grew in February by 2.9% compared to January, when it dropped by 4.6%.

In the euro area it went up by 3% from January, when it dropped by 5.2%.

The volume of retail trade for non-food products grew the most in both the EU and the euro area, by 6.2% and 6.8% respectively, after it went down at the start of the year.

The volume of retail trade for automotive fuels recovered as well, by 2.4% in the EU and 3.7% in the euro area.

The volume of retail trade dropped on the month only for food and tobacco products and drinks, by 0.8% in the EU and 1.1% in the euro area.

Among the countries whose statistics were available to Eurostat, the biggest monthly increase in the volume of retail trade was reported by Austria, of 28.2%.

It was followed by Slovenia and Italy, with a 16.4% and an 8.4% increase in the volume of retail trade.

In Croatia the volume of retail trade in February grew 4.4% from January, when it rose by 3.4%.

Monthly drops in the volume of retail trade were reported by Malta (-1.5%), France (-1.2%), Hungary (-1.2%), Portugal (-0.7) and Finland (-0.4).

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ZAGREB, 29 January, 2021 -  Retail sales in Croatia in December 2020 fell by 3.2% compared to December 2019, falling for the tenth month in a row and even faster than in November, the State Bureau of Statistics (DZS) reported on Friday.

According to seasonally adjusted data, consumption in December contracted by 0.8% compared to November and by 3.2% compared to December 2019.

Impacted by the coronavirus crisis, it was the tenth month in a row that retail sales had declined, after registering a contraction of 0.7% in November.

Retail sales of non-food products in December, excluding motor oils and lubricants, fell by 5.5% on the year, while sales of food, beverages and tobacco products increased by 4.7%.

Retail trade for the entire year fell by 5.8% in real terms.

Recession continues

The continued contraction in retail sales in December was due to weak personal consumption in the current coronavirus crisis.

The drop in consumption is one of the leading causes of recession as personal consumption is the largest component of gross domestic product (GDP).

Year on year, GDP plunged by a record 15.4% in Q2 2020 and by 10% in Q3 2020.

Restrictive measures imposed at the end of November to contain the second wave of the coronavirus infection had a negative impact on the economy in Q4 too, with the recession continuing in that quarter as well.

A takeover for Istrian Supermarkets (IS) by the popular retail giant Studenac is in the works as potential new investments and the strengthening of the company loom.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 14th of March, 2019, Studenac, one of the leading retail chains in the Republic of Croatia, has officially submitted a request for the takeover of the Poreč-based retail company Istrian Supermarkets (IS) to the Croatian Competition Agency (AZTN). Upon receiving approval from AZTN and properly meeting all the terms and conditions agreed between the involved parties, Studenac will acquire 100 percent of Istrian Supermarket's shares based on the recently signed contract between the two companies.

This transaction will certainly pave the way and provide fertile ground for yet more investments and the transfer of knowledge and experience for both Istrian Supermarkets and Studenac, and will significantly increase the volume of business, further enabling the market leader to build its already strong retail portfolio along the Adriatic coast.

Michal Senczuk, the head of Studenac's management body, stated:

"Studenac is continuing to improve its offers to domestic customers through the takeover of a company that is [already] well positioned and highly valued by its customers in Istria. Istrian Supermarkets (IS) is a successful organisation with excellent resources and we believe that this synergistic effect will lead us all to new opportunities which will contribute to the satisfaction of our customers as well as our employees.''

Vedran Banovac, Istrian Supermarkets' main director added:

"We're extremely happy to have a chance to be a significant part of the consolidation process of the Croatian retail market, and for Istrian Supermarkets, this transaction represents a strategic opportunity to increase our market share in the dynamic growth within the region. We're looking forward to the integration of our team with Studenac and the joint work we'll undertake, through which we'll continue to strengthen our business.''

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A new retail chain is coming to from Italy and offering a wealth of new possibilities for shopping in Croatia. Eurospin is a discount store with enviable revenue and income, and it is bringing job openings with it.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 3rd of December, 2018, not so long ago, Germany's Hofer attempted to take to the Croatian market, announcing its opening in the western part of Zagreb and its surroundings, even going as far as to recruit workers, and then, without explanation, it withdrew.

With regard to ads on social networks in both Zagreb and Rijeka seeking workers, construction land, commercial property with parking in cities with more than 10,000 people living there, the question is when will the Croatian market become richer for another major international trade chain - Eurospin.

As Vecernji list writes, Eurospin is a classic Italian discount store with more than 1,000 stores across Italy and 80 in neighbouring Slovenia, boasting about 7,000 workers, record revenues of 4.7 billion euro and an income of 184 million euro in 2017.

While this is far from the leading ten players in Europe, among which the Schwarz group is the frontrunner with both Lidl and Kaufland in the same portfolio, when it comes to the Croatian market, in which the top ten of the total 38.7 percent of total retail revenues continues to hold more than 80 percent of the market share, the Eurospin concept such as PennyMarket, Aldi, or Hofer is certainly significant when it comes to shopping in Croatia.

Specialising in the discounted sale of food products and daily shopping, Eurospin differs from other competitors in Europe by selling its brands exclusively. There are no classic brands found in other chains in these stores, only those that this retail chain's team plotted through its very own network of carefully selected partners.

The company has adjusted the format of its products in accordance with the taste and traditions of the individual markets, as Lidl is doing today, and this formula proved to be a winning one, first in Italy, and then in neighbouring Slovenia.

Back in 2000, they were the first in Italy in this segment by the number of sales points, turnover, and number of customers, they now want to become the most significant in Europe.

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Croatia was leading the way both in yearly and in monthly retail trade in June.