After unexpected growth in January, Poland's retail sales fell again in February, statistics office GUS said. The February figure was 0.8 percent down year-on-year and down 2.6 percent month-on-month. Seasonally adjusted retail sales fell 1.3 percent y/y in February.

The decrease was a surprise to economists. Analysts surveyed by PAP has expected retail sales to rise 0.3 percent y/y and fall 1.8 percent m/m.

“The data confirmed that the rebound of retail sales in January ... was a one-off effect and the consumers’ demand remains weak at the beginning of 2013,” BZ WBK economists wrote in a comment.

They stressed the fact that “such a weak result was not due to a strong contraction in one category of sales (e.g. cars) but a clear and broad-based deterioration.”

KW