German retail sales climbed in May, with turnover increasing by 1.1% in real terms against the previous month, provisional data from the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) has shown.
On a calendar and seasonally adjusted basis, retail turnover grew 1.1% in real terms and 1% in nominal terms against April 2026 figures.
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Measured against May 2025, turnover was up 1.8% in real terms and 3.2% in nominal terms.
Destatis also issued a downward revision to its April 2026 data.
Retail turnover for that month is now recorded as having fallen 0.4% in real terms and 0.2% in nominal terms compared with March, revised from an initial estimate of a 0.3% decline in real terms and 0.3% growth in nominal terms.
Petrol station sales showed swings in May, a pattern Destatis attributed to the conflict in the Middle East together with a fuel discount scheme running in Germany between 1 May and 30 June 2026.
On a calendar and seasonally adjusted basis, turnover at petrol stations grew 3.5% in real terms but declined 1.8% in nominal terms versus April.
This came after a 2.7% real-terms fall and an 8.8% nominal rise in March and drops of 5.2% in real terms and 2.7% in nominal terms during April.
Against May 2025, real turnover at petrol stations dropped 6.2%, while nominal turnover climbed 7.4%.
Destatis pointed out that these figures incorporate sales from petrol station shops as well as fuel.
Food retail turnover rose 1.1% in real terms and 1% in nominal terms in May against the previous month, on a calendar and seasonally adjusted basis, and was 0.6% higher in real terms and 1.5% higher in nominal terms year-on-year.
Non-food retail turnover increased 1% in real terms and 1.2% in nominal terms month-on-month, and 2.7% in real terms and 4.3% in nominal terms compared with May 2025.
Internet and mail order trade posted the sharpest rise among the categories, up 3.4% in real terms and 3.6% in nominal terms against April, and 7% and 7.8% respectively against May 2025.
