Retail sales in May 2023 in real terms 4.6% below the previous year’s level – Stuttgart Journal

Real retail sales in Baden-Württemberg in May 2023, like retail sales in the previous months, were below the value of the corresponding month of the previous year.

According to preliminary results from the State Statistical Office of Baden-Württemberg, the sales of retail companies fell in real terms, i.e. price-adjusted, by 4.6% compared to the result of May 2022.

In nominal terms, i.e. without price adjustments, sales rose by 1.6%. The sometimes high price increases in the retail sector are reflected in the still significant difference between nominal and real sales development.

May 2023 in Baden-Württemberg, with a total of 24 sales days, had one fewer sales days than May 2022 (25 days).

The number of people employed in May 2023 decreased by 0.6% compared to the corresponding month of the previous year.

For comparison: According to preliminary results from the Federal Statistical Office, the price-adjusted sales of retail companies in Germany fell by 5.1% in May 2023 compared to May 2022. Nominally, sales increased by 1.2% compared to the same month last year.

Real sales declines in both “food retail” and “non-food retail”

In May 2023, companies in Baden-Württemberg’s “food retail trade” reported a price-adjusted drop in sales of 5.3% compared to the corresponding month of the previous year. In contrast, nominal sales rose by 5.8%. The number of people employed fell by 2.2% compared to May 2022.

In the domestic “non-food retail trade”, sales in May 2023 fell by 4.2% in real terms compared to the result for the same month last year (nominal −1.4%), while the number of people working here increased by 0.6%.

Price-adjusted retail trade in textiles with slight increase in turnover

Within the observed non-food retail sectors, sales in May 2023 were mostly below the level of the same month of the previous year. The decline in “retail trade with furnishings, household appliances, building supplies” was particularly pronounced, with a minus of −6.6% in real terms (−1.4% in nominal terms).

The »Retail trade in furniture, hi-fi and IT« reported a drop in sales of -6.4% in real terms compared to the previous year’s level (nominal -1.8%), the »Retail trade in books, stationery and office supplies« was 3.3% lower in real terms (nominal −0.1%).

In contrast, the »retail trade with textiles, clothing, shoes, leather goods« recorded a slight increase in sales of 0.1% in real terms (nominal +1.8%).