22/03/2013 00:00
TW
2

CASTILLA and Leon, Catalonia and Navarra were the autonomous regions with the most retail sales in January in comparison with January 2005, while in the Balearics sales rose by 2.2 percent and employment in the retail sector by 1.6 percent. According to the Retail Business Index published yesterday by the National Statistics Institute (INE), retail sales grew by some 5 percent in January compared with the same month last year. Meanwhile, employment in the retail sector grew by 1.6 percent.
However, when inflation is taken into account, retail sales actually grew by 0.5 percent in January in comparison with January 2005.
By autonomous communities, without allowing for inflation, the highest sales figures for January were recorded in Castilla and Leon (7.3 percent). This was followed by Catalonia with 7 percent and Navarra with 6.9 percent. The lowest figures for retail sales were recorded in Castilla-La Mancha which had a drop of 1.4 percent.
This was followed by La Rioja which had a drop of 1.1. percent and then Extremadura with a drop of 0.1 percent.
With regard to retail employment by regions, this rose most in Navarra which had 5.3 percent more employment.
This region was followed by Galicia with 3.9 percent more employment and then Murcia with 3.8 percent more.
However, in the Canary Islands employment in this sector fell by one percent.
The Retail Business Index measures the short term development of sales and employment in the retail sector of Spain.
The measurement is taken by means of a poll of 10'500 companies.