Turnover in retail trade, April 2020
Retail trade decreased in April
Statistical news from Statistics Sweden 2020-05-28 9.30
The volume of retail trade sales decreased by 1.3 percent in April 2020 compared with the same month a year ago. Retail sales in consumables (excluding Systembolaget, the state-owned chain of liquor stores) decreased by 2.6 percent, while retail sales in durables decreased by 1.8 percent. These figures are working-day adjusted and in fixed prices.
In fixed prices and non-working-day adjusted figures, total retail trade decreased by 1.3 percent. Consumables (such as goods sold in department stores and specialised grocery stores, excluding Systembolaget) decreased by 2.5 percent, while durables (such as goods sold in clothing stores, furniture stores, second-hand goods stores and mail-order houses) decreased by 1.8 percent.
Turnover in retail trade measured in current prices decreased by 0.2 percent in April 2020 compared with the same month a year ago. Retail sales in consumables (excluding Systembolaget) increased by 1.0 percent and sales in durables decreased by 2.4 percent.
In seasonally adjusted figures, retail trade increased by 0.2 percent between March and April 2020. In the last three-month period (February-April), sales increased by 0.1 percent compared with the previous three-month period (November-January).
Definitions and explanations
Total retail trade here refers to NACE 47 excluding 47.3.
Trade in consumables (excluding Systembolaget) here refers to NACE 47.11 and 47.2. excluding 47.25.
Trade in durables here refers to NACE 47.19 and 47.4–47.9.
Revisions
When the Retail Trade Index is published for a new month, the indices for previous months are also revised if new information has been added. From April 2015, a new method of calculating definitive statistics was introduced. The new method primarily entails that administrative data from the Swedish Tax Agency is used quarterly to increase the number of companies that are investigated and reduce the burden on the companies to contribute data. This means that definitive quarterly statistics are based on a calculation for all the companies in the population. The reason for using administrative data every quarter is to improve the quality of the Retail Trade Index.
Usually the material is revised between two and four months backwards depending on where in the quarter the reference month is. In connection with the publication of the first and second month in a quarter, the entire previous quarter is revised. The series, corrected for calendar and seasonal effects and trend estimates, is always revised from January 1991 and forward.
Information regarding major revisions will be published at Turnover in the service sector.
Next publishing will be
Data concerning May 2020 will be published on 26 June.
Statistical Database
More information is available in the Statistical Database
Feel free to use the facts from this statistical news but remember to state Source: Statistics Sweden.