The value of retail sales in June was down a seasonally adjusted 1.4 percent on month in June, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said on Friday.
That missed forecasts for a decline of 0.5 percent following the upwardly revised 0.7 percent increase in May (originally 0.6 percent).
On a yearly basis, retail sales improved 1.5 percent - again shy of expectations for an increase of 2.8 percent following the upwardly revised 3.7 percent jump in the previous month (originally 3.6 percent).