Germany's retail sales growth eased at a slower-than-expected pace in February, preliminary figures from Destatis showed Tuesday.
Retails sales grew 3.6 percent year-over-year in February, slower than January's 5.0 percent climb, which was revised from a 5.3 percent increase.
Economists had forecast a 3.4 percent growth for the month. It was the third consecutive monthly rise.
Sales of food, beverages and tobacco advanced 1.5 percent in February from a year ago.
On a monthly basis, retail sales dropped a seasonally adjusted 0.5 percent in February, in contrast to a 2.3 percent increase in the prior month. It was the first decline in five months. Economists had forecast a 0.7 percent drop for the month.
In the January to February period, retail sales climbed 4.3 percent compared to the same period last year.
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