Retail trade

The retail trade index measures the monthly evolution of the turnover at current prices of businesses which are engaged in retail trade. With effect from January 2018, the indices are calculated with reference to the base year 2015, using the Ateco 2007 classification (Italian edition of Nace Rev. 2).

In March 2018, the value and volume of retail trade continued to grow at a modest pace, both increasing by 2.9% compared with March 2017.

The 3 months to March (Quarter 1) shows a decrease of 0.3% in terms of value and volume; the second consecutive fall in the quarterly movement.

Month-on-month, the value of retail trade was estimated to have fallen by 0.2%, while the quantity sold dropped by 0.6%.

In March 2018, internet sales and small scale distribution saw a contraction when compared with March 2017 (respectively -0.3% and -1.3%), while large scale distribution saw a strong growth year-on-year (+7.0%).