Despite the overall decline, significant developments emerged with regard to the revenues of stores selling manufactured goods, Statistics Estonia said.

General trends in retail trade

Johanna Linda Pihlak, an analyst at Statistics Estonia, explained that the year-on-year turnover drop was slightly slower than September's 4 percent fall.

"The fall in turnover volume in October was mainly due to grocery stores, whose turnover dropped by 4 percent compared to the previous year," noted Pihlak.

In contrast, stores selling manufactured goods saw their turnover volume increase by 3 percent year on year, marking a break from over two years of decline.

This upturn was a key highlight of the month's retail performance.

Performance of stores selling manufactured goods

Among stores selling manufactured goods, several categories experienced significant growth.

These were:

• Specialized stores (computers, books, sports equipment, games, toys): Which went up by 18 percent.
• Mail order and internet sales: Up 9 percent.
• Pharmacies and cosmetics stores: A rise of 4 percent.
• Second-hand goods and non-store retail sales (stalls, markets, direct sales): +3 percent.

Conversely, certain categories continued to struggle.

• Stores selling textiles, clothing, and footwear saw a 12 percent fall in turnover on year to October, the agency reported.
• Household goods and appliances, hardware, and building materials: Turnover down 4 percent on year.
• Other non-specialized stores (eg., department stores): Down 3 percent.

Automotive fuel and month-on-month comparison

Retail enterprises engaged in the sale of automotive fuel reported stable turnover compared to October 2023.

Month-on-month, the turnover of retail trade enterprises rose by 6 percent compared with September 2024.

After adjusting for seasonal and working-day effects, the rise was 1 percent.

2024 to date

In the first 10 months of 2024, the turnover volume of retail trade enterprises dropped by 4 percent compared with the same period in 2023.

Despite this, October's improvement in manufactured goods turnover signals a potential turnaround for sectors that have struggled for over two years.

The report highlights the turnover volume index, which measures changes in sales at constant prices, adjusted for inflation.

These statistics, compiled using VAT data from the Estonian Tax and Customs Board (MTA), provide critical insights into the Estonian economy's performance.

More detailed X.

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