retail trade
The citizens proved the economics minister wrong: the higher (minimum) wage level did not lead to more consumer spending.
In January, sales in grocery stores stagnated, and customers in the non-food segment were even more reserved (-1%). Only at the gas stations, which account for a sixth of the retail volume, did citizens treat themselves to more (+4.5%), according to figures from the Central Statistical Office (KSH) presented on Wednesday. At current prices, 1,350 billion forints were sold, hardly more than at the beginning of 2023. This corresponded to an increase of 0.6% compared to the previous year. The retail industry in January is therefore far from the wishes of Márton Nagy; consumption should contribute as much as possible to the forecast economic growth of 4%.
The economics minister’s optimism did not seem unfounded, as the minimum wage had already been raised nationwide by 10-15% on December 1st. The increased wages were paid out in January, but it is quite conceivable that many Hungarians used the money “on credit” during the Christmas business: the 1,800 billion forints realized in retail in December certainly represents a record volume. In the last month of This year, food purchases rose by almost 1.5% – so this first decline was only followed by stagnation once more in January.
#cautious #January #Budapester #Zeitung
