The Cyprus Statistical Service released data on Wednesday, indicating a rise in both the value and volume of retail trade turnover in September this year compared to the same month last year.

Specifically, the Turnover Value Index of Retail Trade for September 2023 saw an 8.6% increase from the corresponding month in the previous year. Concurrently, the Turnover Volume Index of Retail Trade registered a 4.2% rise compared to September of the previous year.

CyStat explains that the Turnover Index of Retail Trade, excluding Motor Vehicles, aims to track short-term trends in retail trade. The turnover encompasses the total amounts invoiced by an enterprise during the reference period. This figure represents the market sales of goods and services, excluding VAT but inclusive of other duties and taxes on the goods. The data covers all enterprises with 10 or more employees, in addition to a selection of smaller businesses.

The compilation of the total index involves calculating a weighted average of the Turnover Indices from various retail trade classes (or activity subsets), with the weights being derived from the annual Wholesale and Retail Trade Survey's results in the base year (2015). These weights reflect each class's turnover share relative to the total retail trade sector turnover.

The available data highlights that the most significant increase in turnover value was in the retail sale of food, drinks, and tobacco (in specialized stores), marking a 16.3% growth compared to September 2022. On the other hand, the most substantial decline was in the retail sale of automotive fuel in specialized stores, showing a 2.3% drop from the previous year.

Regarding the turnover volume index, the textiles, clothing, and footwear sector led with a 7.9% increase compared to the same month last year. In contrast, the retail sale of automotive fuel in specialized stores again recorded the most significant decrease, with a 1% fall compared to September of the previous year.