FX.co ★ Romania Retail Sales Rebound After Yearlong Decline

Romania’s retail sales rose by 0.1% year-on-year in August 2026, the first increase after twelve consecutive months of decline, following a 6.1% contraction in July. The improvement was driven by a rebound in non-food product sales, which grew by 0.2% after a 6.7% drop in the previous month. In contrast, sales of food, beverages, and tobacco continued to fall, shrinking by 1.9% compared with a 6.0% decrease in July, while sales of automotive fuel in specialized stores also declined by 0.3%, though this was less severe than the 4.8% drop recorded previously. On a seasonally adjusted monthly basis, retail trade advanced 2.3%, up from a 0.8% increase in July. Over the first eight months of the year, however, retail sales were still down 5.1% compared with the same period a year earlier.