German Retail Sales Unexpectedly Fall

In November 2025, Germany experienced a 0.6% decrease in retail sales compared to the previous month, falling short of market forecasts which had predicted a 0.2% increase. This decline followed a revised upward growth of 0.3% in October and marked the first reduction in monthly sales since August. The decrease was mainly due to a significant 1.9% fall in food sales. Conversely, sales in the non-food sector saw a modest rise of 0.3%, while the online and mail-order sector experienced a 0.9% increase. On an annual scale, retail trade recorded a growth of 1.1%, which was a slowdown from the revised 1.6% increase observed in October. Preliminary estimates indicate that retail sales for the entirety of 2025 grew by 2.4%.