Index of retail sales, April 1997:

Retail sales increase two per cent

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The volume of retail sales in Norway went up 2.2 per cent in the four first months of this year compared to the same period last year. The value index rose by 4.7 per cent and the price index by 2.5 per cent in the same period.

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The volume of retail trade in food, beverages and tobacco in specialized stores went down by 3.8 per cent in the first four months of this year compared to the same period last year. The turnover of non-specialized stores (mainly food, beverages and tobacco) was down 0.9 per cent in the same period. Retail sales of pharmaceutical and medical goods, cosmetics and toiletries and retail trade in other new merchandise went up respectively 3.8 and 6 per cent this year compared to the same period last year. Retail trade outside stores jumped 16.7 per cent in the same period.

New Statistics

Index of retail sales, April 1997.
Statistics are published every month in the Weekly Bulletin of Statistics. More information: Solveig Nygårdseter, tel. +47 62 88 51 74, e-mail: snl@ssb.no or Rune Sønsterudbråten, tel. +47 62 88 54 37, e-mail: rso@ssb.no.

Weekly Bulletin issue no. 24, 1997