Retail turnover 0.6 percent lower

• Small decrease for non-food shops in April
• Volume down for supermarkets
• Large rise for mail-order companies and web shops

Figures released by Statistics Netherlands today show that Dutch retail turnover was 0.6 percent lower in April 2013 than in the same month last year. The volume of sales fell by 2.7 percent, retail prices were 2.1 percent higher.

Results for non-food shops were not as bad in April as in March: turnover was about 1 percent lower than twelve months previously. The volume of sales was 3 percent smaller. Clothes shops and textile supermarkets reported an increase in turnover, just as chemists. Other non-food branches faced turnover decreases. In some shops traditional spring purchases may have started later because of the cold weather in March.

For shops selling food, drink and tobacco, results were poorer in April than in March. Although turnover was about 1 percent higher than in April last year, the volume fell by nearly 3 percent. Volumes were smaller in both supermarkets and specialist shops. Last year most sales for the Easter holiday took place in April, while this year they were in March.

Turnover realised by mail-order companies and web shops rose by more than 12 percent. This is the largest increase in turnover in the last six months.

The composition of shopping days was slightly more favourable than in April last year. The positive effect of this was about 1 percent.