Retail sales in Germany increased sharply in January amid signs that household consumption, traditionally the main hurdle to a self-sustaining recovery in the euro zone's biggest economy, is finally picking up.
German retail sales rose by 2.7% month-on-month in January in seasonally, price and calendar-adjusted terms, the federal statistics office, Destatis, said in a statement. In December, retail sales had fallen by 0.7% month-on-month.
On a 12-month basis, German retailers reported an increase in business of 1.7% in January, the strongest rise since the introduction of the euro in January 2002, Destatis said. The increase was also better than expected - consensus forecasts had been pencilling in a month-on-month increase of 1%.
