Norway’s February retail sales rebound 0.1%

Retail sales in Norway went up at a monthly rate of 0.1% in February, data by Statistics Norway showed on Wednesday, while rebounding after a 0.1% drop in January.

Market consensus had pointed to a 0.2% monthly growth.

Last month, there was a rebound in sales at non-specialized stores, up 0.7% after a 0.1% fall in January.

Sales rose at a faster rate for other goods, up 1.4% after remaining flat in January.

On the other hand, sales dropped for food and beverages (down 0.7% after rising 0.5% in January), automotive fuels (down 1.4% after rising 1% in January), ICT equipment (down 0.7% after rising 6.2% in January) and cultural/recreation goods (down 3.5% after a 4.2% growth in January).

In annual terms, Norway’s retail sales slumped 0.3% in February, following a 1.2% decline in the prior month.

The Norwegian Krone was last 0.16% weaker against the US Dollar on Wednesday, with the USD/NOK currency pair trading at 10.7607. The exotic Forex pair was holding near a fresh 15-week high of 10.7810, which it registered earlier in the session.