Eurozone Retail Sales Stronger Than Expected in February

Eurozone retail sales were stronger than expected in February, data revealed, as some countries eased restrictions on fighting the Covid-19 pandemic that month before re-tightening them in March.

The European Union statistics office Eurostat said that retail sales in the 19 countries that use the euro rose 13% from the previous month in February, but fell 2.9% year-on-year.

A Reuters poll had expected an increase of 1.5% on a monthly basis and a decline of 5.4% on an annual basis.