Romania’s retail trade turnover, considered the most important indicator of household consumption, increased by 13.5% in 2016, the highest growth after 2007, according to data from the National Statistics Institute (INS).

In 2015, the turnover in the retail trade went up by 8.9% year-on-year, following an advance of 7% in 2014. The biggest growth pace was recorded in 2007, when the turnover in the retail trade amounted to 17.8% over 2006.

The retail sector’s growth decelerated, however, in the last months of 2016 as the effects of the VAT cuts started to fade off. In December, the retail trade turnover had a growth of 7.2% compared to the same month of 2015, as the food sales recorded a slight decline, INS data shows.

In February last year, the retail trade grew by 21.8% compared to the same month in 2015, a record level since 2008. The official data exclude the sales of motor vehicles and motorcycles.

Sales in the retail sector were boosted by the government's fiscal measures. Several tax reductions entered into force starting January 1, 2016. The general VAT rate dropped from 24% to 20%.

The sales of non-food products went up by 15.2% last year while food and beverage sales increased by 13.7% and fuel sales grew by 10.2%.

editor@romania-insider.com