Cyprus Retail Sales Growth Accelerates in September

Retail sales in Cyprus rose 7.7% year-on-year in September 2026, accelerating from 7.0% in August. Growth strengthened for information and communication equipment (27.5% vs 24.8%), clothing and footwear (22.5% vs 16.7%), other household equipment (14.2% vs 12.0%), and pharmaceuticals, orthopedic goods and cosmetics (7.8% vs 7.1%). Sales of food, beverages and tobacco in specialised stores also rebounded (1.0% vs -1.0%), while declines eased for automotive fuel (-0.4% vs -1.5%) and retail sales not in stores (-1.5% vs -7.0%). In contrast, growth slowed for food, beverages and tobacco in non-specialised stores (4.9% vs 5.1%) and cultural and recreation goods (9.6% vs 12.7%), while sales of flowers, plants, watches, jewellery, optical goods and second-hand goods turned negative (-1.4% vs 1.3%). From January to September, retail sales increased 6.6% from the same period a year earlier.

Retail sales in Cyprus increased 7.8% year-on-year in August 2026, easing from 8.9% growth in July. Growth eased across several categories, including information and communication equipment (24.8% vs 25.6%), other household equipment (12.0% vs 16.9%), cultural and recreation goods (12.7% vs 13.2%), flowers, plants, watches, jewellery, optical goods and second-hand goods (1.3% vs 3.7%), and food, beverages and tobacco in non-specialised stores (5.1% vs 6.0%). Meanwhile, growth increased for clothing and footwear (16.7% vs 16.4%) and pharmaceuticals, orthopedic goods and cosmetics (7.1% vs 6.5%). Sales of food, beverages and tobacco in specialized stores also improved slightly, although remaining negative (-1.0% vs -0.9%). In contrast, automotive fuel sales fell (-1.5% vs 3.4%) and retail sales not in stores declined sharply (-7.0% vs 17.0%). From January to August, retail sales excluding automotive fuel increased 6.4% compared with the same period a year earlier.

Retail sales in Cyprus rose 8.9% year-on-year in July 2026, accelerating from 5.5% in the previous month and marking the strongest growth since January. Sales growth strengthened across several categories, including food, beverages, and tobacco in non-specialized stores (6.0% vs 2.1% in June), information and communication equipment (25.6% vs 20.1%), other household equipment (16.9% vs 14.1%), cultural and recreation goods (13.2% vs 10.1%), and pharmaceuticals, orthopedic goods, and cosmetics (6.5% vs 5.6%). At the same time, sales rebounded for automotive fuels (3.4% vs -3.5%) and flowers, plants, watches, jewellery, optical goods, and second-hand goods (3.7% vs -1.4%). Meanwhile, sales growth slowed for clothing and footwear (16.4% vs 17.1%) and goods not in stores (17.0% vs 20.5%). From January to July, retail sales increased 6.3% from the same period a year earlier.