The volume of sales in retail trade, excluding fuels, has increased by 5.8 % in December 2020 compared to the same month last year.
Despite the reopening of shops deemed non-essential on 1 December[1], it is still the sector of retail sale via mail order houses or via Internet which increases the most with sales volumes 52.6 % higher than in December 2019. In the same period, other sharp increases were registered for “Audio and video equipment, hardware, paints and glass, electrical household appliances, etc.” and " other retail sale in non-specialised stores”, i.e. increases of 12.3 % and 10.0 %, respectively.
The sharpest decrease was registered for ‘Textiles, clothing and footwear’, i.e. a fall of 6.9 %.
These indices are expressed with reference year 2015=100.
[1] From 6 November 2020 onwards, at the beginning of the second wave of COVID-19, shops considered non-essential had to close and some sections considered non-essential in supermarkets were suppressed. Since 1 December 2020 these shops have reopened to customers and all the sections of the supermarkets are once again accessible.