Retail sales in Germany rise fastest for nearly three years in June
Staff Writer |
Germany’s retailers enjoyed another steep rise in sales in June, with the recent upturn in performance in the sector underscored by another record improvement in gross margins to follow that seen in May.
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The month also saw the continuation of a solid rate of retail employment growth, alongside an unprecedented increase in the level of spending on goods for resale.
The seasonally adjusted headline Germany Retail PMI – which tracks monthly changes in like-for-like sales – rose to 57.1 in June from May’s 55.5.
The latest reading was the highest for almost three years and signalled a sharp and accelerated month-on-month increase in like-forlike sales.
The survey found that spending was boosted by especially warm weather during the month and the start of the football World Cup.
Year-on-year sales growth remained strong in June and among the quickest seen since the survey began in 2002.
However, unlike the monthly measure, the rate of increase on an annual basis was slightly slower than that recorded in the previous survey period.
For the second month in a row, sales were generally above retailers’ previously-set plans.
The degree to which actual sales surpassed targets was considerable in the context of the historical series trend, albeit slightly less marked than in May.
Retailers also remained optimistic about the outlook for sales, although the level of confidence weakened further from March’s recent peak amid concerns over difficulties finding new staff and constraints among suppliers.
The level of employment in Germany’s retail sector increased further at the end of the second, to stretch the current sequence of growth to nine months.
The rate at which staff numbers rose was solid and unchanged on May’s 11-month high.
Adding to the positive news, June saw another sharp increase in retailers’ gross margins.
The improvement was the greatest in the series’ history, surpassing the previous record set in May.
Sustained strong growth in sales led retailers to up their purchasing activity again in June.
The extent to which spending on goods for resale increased was in fact the greatest ever recorded by the survey. ■