Published on December 27, 2023, new data reveals a 0.4% month-on-month increase in retail sales volume from October to November 2023, according to seasonally adjusted figures. Contributing factors to this growth include Black Friday promotions, discounted items, and sales of electrical household goods.
Marius Bergh, Senior Advisor at Statistics Norway (SSB), notes a rise in retail trade, particularly in sectors covering various household items such as electrical goods. He attributes this boost to the typical sales events like “Black Friday” and “Black Week.”
The latest figures from the retail trade index show an uptick in the seasonally adjusted sales volume for retail trade in November. While the September to November period saw a decline in retail trade compared to the previous three months, November has historically been a growth month for retail.
Bergh suggests that the moderate growth in November may be linked to a shift in traditional Christmas shopping from December to November, driven by major discount campaigns like Black Friday and Black Week.
Over the period from September to November 2023, there was a 0.4% decline compared to the preceding three-month period. Additionally, from November 2022 to November 2023, there was a 1.5% decrease in calendar-adjusted sales volume.
The overall retail trade is slightly up by 0.2% from October to November 2023, with increased retail and wholesale trade contributing to the growth, while trade and repair of motor vehicles pull down the overall figure.
Despite the positive trend in November, the calendar-adjusted volume is still down by 7.4% from November 2022 to November 2023. Reduced trade and repair of motor vehicles primarily contribute to this decline, along with decreased wholesale and retail trade.
In a broader European context, Eurostat data reveals that the eurozone countries collectively experienced a 0.1% increase in seasonally adjusted retail trade volume from September to October 2023. Notably, Sweden and Denmark saw respective increases of 1.6% and 0.8% in October.