Fuel sales increased 7% on the month in March, while food items were by 1.7% more expensive. Sales of non-food product went also up, by 1.2% compared with February, in data adjusted for the number of working days and seasonal factors.
In annual terms, adjusted retail sales rose 11.9% in March, supported by higher demand in all sectors, INS data showed. Non-food sales increased 14.9% on the year in March, while fuel and food sales advanced 11.9% and 7.8%, respectively.
In the first quarter of 2014, adjusted retail sales were up 8.3% compared with the year-earlier period, again boosted by higher demand across the board.
In unadjusted data, retail sales increased 18.2% in March from a month earlier, and were up 13.6% compared with the same period of 2013.