Eurozone retail sales rise more than expected in March

Retail sales in the eurozone rose more than expected in March, according to figures released by Eurostat.

Sales were up 0.3% on the month, beating expectations for a 0.1% increase. Sales of non-food products rose 0.4%, while sales of food, drinks and tobacco were up 0.2% and automotive fuel sales fell by 0.3%.

On the year, retail sales increased 2.3%, surpassing expectations for a 2.1% jump and up from a downwardly-revised 1.7% in February. Non-food products sales were up 3.1% and sales of food, drinks and tobacco were 1.6% higher, while automotive fuel sales were stable.

The month-on-month growth for February was revised down to 0.5% from a previously estimated 0.7%, while the year-on-year increase was revised down from 1.8%.

In the EU-28 group of nations, sales fell 0.2% on the month but rose 2.5% on the year.

Claus Vistesen, chief eurozone economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, said retail sales slow sharply in the first quarter but the trend suggests a rebound in the second quarter.

"A decent headline, but the downward revision of the February data mean that momentum in sales were virtually flat towards the end of Q1," he said.