Romania Retail Sales Post Steepest Decline Since 2020

Romania’s retail sales increased 0.1% year-on-year in August 2026, marking the first increase after twelve consecutive months of decline, compared with a 6.1% drop in the previous month. The rebound was led by non-food product sales, which increased (0.2% vs -6.7% in July), while sales of food, beverages and tobacco declined (-1.9% vs -6.0%) and retail sales of automotive fuel in specialized stores also fell (-0.3% vs -4.8%), albeit at a softer pace. On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, retail trade rose 2.3%, accelerating from a 0.8% increase in the previous month. In the first eight months of the year, retail sales declined 5.1% from the same period a year earlier.

Romania’s retail sales fell 6.1% year-on-year in July 2026, marking the twelfth consecutive month of decline, but easing from an upwardly revised 7.4% drop in the previous month. The softer contraction was broad-based, with sales falling less sharply in food, beverages and tobacco (-5.8% vs -7.3% in June), non-food products (-6.7% vs -6.8%), and automotive fuel in specialized stores (-4.4% vs -5.8%). On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, retail trade rose 0.8%, rebounding from an upwardly revised 1.3% drop in June. In the first seven months of the year, retail sales declined 5.8% from the same period a year earlier.

Retail sales in Romania fell 7.3% year-on-year in June 2026, deepening from a downwardly revised 5.1% decline in May and marking the eleventh consecutive month of contraction. It was also the steepest annual decline since April 2020, as sales weakened across all major categories. Sales of food, beverages, and tobacco posted the largest drop (-7.3% vs -4.8% in May), while declines also intensified for non-food products (-6.4% vs -5.7%) and automotive fuel sold in specialized stores (-5.8% vs -3.4%). On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, retail sales fell 1.2% in June, reversing a downwardly revised 0.8% increase in the previous month.