Bulgaria's retail sales grew 0.4% M/M in May
Bulgarians have started to spend less on clothing, furniture and household appliances, but instead increased purchases of pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and fuel, official statistics data on retail trade in the country shows.Retail sales are indicative of households' purchases and could be used as a reference point for the recovery in consumption, which in turn is one of the most precise indicators of consumers' perception of the crisis.According to the latest report by the National Statistics Institute (NSI), Bulgaria's retail sales edged up 0.4 per cent on the month in May. In annual terms, retail sales grew 1.6 per cent.Sales of clothing and footwear slid 3.8 per cent in the period against May 2010, while household appliances and other household goods declined 2.3 per cent.The most significant rise was registered in retail sales of fuel, of seven per cent, and sales of drugs and cosmetics, which advanced 7.2 per cent. Sales of computers and handsets went up by two per cent, while overall sales of electronics added 1.7 per cent./Source: The Sofia Echo/