Volume change in retail trade in the Member States of the European Union, November 2025

Released: 14 January 2026

In November 2025, the volume of retail trade in the European Union, based on calendar‑adjusted data, exceeded the same month of the previous year by 2.3%. According to the available data, retail trade volumes increased in the majority of Member States, with the largest rise recorded in Cyprus (8.5%). A decline (0.1–4.6%) was registered in four Member States, the most significant in Romania. Seasonally and calendar‑adjusted data show that retail trade volumes in the EU increased by 0.2% compared with the previous month.

In November 2025, the volume of retail trade in Hungary was 2.5% higher than a year earlier,1 while seasonally and calendar‑adjusted data indicate a 0.1% increase compared with the previous month. Among the Visegrád countries (V4), retail trade volumes rose by 2.1% in Poland and fell by 2.8% in Slovakia compared with November 2024 (data for Czechia were not available).

In Hungary, the volume of retail trade in specialized and non‑specialized food shops increased by 2.6% compared with the same month of the previous year. Sales volumes in non‑specialized food and beverages shops, which account for 77% of food retail trade, grew by 4.4%, while specialized food, beverage and tobacco stores registered a 3.4% decline. Non‑food retail trade volumes increased overall by 4.6%. Compared with November 2024, sales volumes rose by 5.4% in pharmaceutical, medical goods and cosmetics shops, by 4.5% in non‑specialized shops dealing in manufactured goods, by 2.1% in furniture and electrical goods stores, and by 1.4% in second‑hand goods shops, while a decrease was recorded in textiles, clothing and footwear shops (0.8%), and in books, computer equipment and other specialized stores (2.5%). Mail order and internet retailing, covering a wide range of goods and accounting for 11% of retail sales in November 2025, increased by 12%. The volume of sales at automotive fuel stations rose by 0.7% compared with a year earlier. Sales volumes of motor vehicles and motor vehicle parts and accessories stores, not included in retail trade data, decreased by 4.0%.

In November 2025, national retail trade turnoverat current prices amounted to HUF 1,747 billion. Of total national retail sales, 47% were realized in specialized and non‑specialized food shops, 39% in non‑food retail trade, and 14% in the fuel sales of automotive fuel stations.

According to Trading Economics macro‑models2 , retail trade in the European Union could grow by around 1.3% year‑on‑year by the end of Q1 2026. In Hungary, growth of 2.7% is expected for the first quarter of 2026, followed by further increases (between 1.8% and 2.2% per quarter) throughout 2026.

Table 1

Volume of retail trade in the member states of the European Union, November 2025

Territorial units Indicesa)(base year 2021) % change compared with
the previous montha) the same month of the previous yearb)
European Union average 104.1 0.2 2.3
Euro area 103.7 0.2 2.3
Belgium 91.7 –1.6 0.5
Bulgaria 120.8 –0.4 3.1
Czechia .. .. ..
Denmark 100.2 1.9 6.2
Germany 100.2 –0.6 1.1
Estonia 93.2 –1.4 0.2
Ireland .. .. ..
Greece .. .. ..
Spain 113.7 1.0 6.1
France 107.8 0.5 3.3
Croatia 116.3 –2.2 1.3
Italy 98.2 0.3 1.6
Cyprus 128.7 1.0 8.5
Latvia 106.5 0.3 3.3
Lithuania 110.3 0.8 3.3
Luxembourg 135.2 5.8 –0.1
Hungary 103.3 0.1 2.5
Malta 123.8 –0.2 3.7
Netherlands 102.2 0.6 2.1
Austria 95.9 –0.8 –2.2
Poland 109.5 –0.9 2.1
Portugal 119.1 2.2 6.5
Romania 113.6 0.0 –4.6
Slovenia 100.4 –0.4 1.0
Slovakia 101.7 –1.5 –2.8
Finland 93.1 0.4 2.7
Sweden 98.5 1.2 5.1
a) Calendar and seasonally adjusted
b) Calendar adjusted
Source: Euro indicators – Retail trade, November 2025. Download date: 9 January 2026
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Footnotes

  1. Due to methodological differences, the data on the volume change of retail trade in the HCSO “Retail Trade” first release may differ from those published by Eurostat. In Hungary, according to the national methodology, the calendar‑adjusted volume of retail trade in November – in line with Eurostat figures – increased by 2.5% compared with the same month of the previous year, and by 0.1% compared with the previous month.

  2. Trading Economics data is available after registration.