Cyprus recorded the European Union’s strongest annual growth in retail trade in September 2026, with sales volumes up 7.6% from a year earlier. The result stood out as retail activity declined month on month across both the euro area and the EU, according to Eurostat.
Retail volumes increased by 0.4% year on year in the euro area and 0.9% across the EU. Cyprus led the member states, ahead of Sweden at 6.9% and Bulgaria at 5.7%. The weakest annual results were recorded in Germany, where volumes fell 2.4%, Romania, down 2.3%, and Spain, down 1.5%.
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Monthly Sales Weaken Across Europe
Compared with August, retail trade volumes fell by 0.7% in the euro area and 0.6% across the EU in September. Both had risen by 0.4% in the previous month.
Germany posted the steepest monthly decline, at 2%, followed by Romania at 1.3% and Portugal at 0.9%. In contrast, volumes rose 5.3% in Luxembourg, 2.2% in Slovakia and 1.5% in Malta.
Cyprus recorded a 0.7% monthly increase, following a 0.1% rise in August. The country’s monthly figures have varied over the year: retail volumes fell 0.9% in April, rebounded 3.7% in May, then declined 0.8% in June. Growth returned in July, when volumes rose 2%, followed by more modest increases in August and September.
Cyprus Maintains Strong Annual Growth
The annual trend in Cyprus has remained robust despite fluctuations in monthly activity. Retail volumes rose 2.7% in April compared with the same month in 2025, then accelerated to 8.4% in May. Growth eased to 5% in June and reached 8.6% in July, before settling at 7.5% in August and 7.6% in September.
The contrast between the annual and monthly figures underscores the importance of separating short-term shifts from longer-term performance. A monthly decline can reflect a change in momentum, while annual comparisons show how sales volumes stand against the same period a year earlier.
Product Categories Show Different Trends
In the euro area, September’s monthly decline reflected lower sales of food, drinks and tobacco, down 0.3%, and non-food products excluding automotive fuel, down 1.2%. Automotive fuel sales at specialised stores increased by 1%.
Across the EU, food, drinks and tobacco volumes fell 0.4%, while non-food sales excluding automotive fuel declined 1%. Automotive fuel sales rose 0.1%.
On an annual basis, food, drinks and tobacco volumes increased by 1.1% in the euro area and 1% in the EU. Non-food retail sales excluding automotive fuel rose 0.7% and 1.2%, respectively. Automotive fuel sales moved in the opposite direction, falling 3% in the euro area and 2.3% across the EU compared with September 2025.
Eurostat’s figures are first estimates and measure retail trade volumes adjusted for price changes, providing an indication of the quantity of goods sold rather than changes in prices.
