Italy's retail sales fell in July - Istat

According to the report from Istat, in July 2020 estimates for seasonally adjusted index of retail trade show a monthly contraction, even though levels of total sales confirm recovery after steep falls due to Covid-19 outbreak. When compared with June 2020, value of sales decreased by 2.2%, while volume of retail trade dropped by 3.1%.

Partial recovery after lockdown was confirmed in the three-month on three-month series, as value grew by 12.1% and volume rose by 11.5%.

In July 2020, both value and volume of sales sharply fell in the year on year series, decreasing by 7.2% and 10.2% respectively.

Concerning large-scale distribution and small-scale distribution, the year on year rate dropped for the 5th consecutive month in July, decreasing by 3.8% and 11.7% respectively. Non-store retail sales were down 7.0% when compared with July 2019.

In July 2020, online sales showed a lower year on year growth rate comparing with the strong rise recorded in June 2020 (+52.9%), however internet sales still remained positive year on year (+11.6%).

Looking at the value of sales for non-food products, dramatic falls were reported across all categories besides tools (+3.2%). Similarly to the previous month, in July 2020 the most affected categories of products were clothing (-27.9%) and shoes, leather goods and travel items (-17.3%).