Brussels, Aug 5 /Agerpres/ - Romania recorded a growth by 23.3 percent in the retail trade sector in this June against the same period in 2007, representing the most significant advance among the 27 European Union member states, according to figures released by the Office for Statistics of the European Community (Eurostat) on Tuesday.

Romania is followed by Slovenia (5.7 percent increase) and Poland (5.2 percent). Only 9 member states saw an annual growth in their retail trade, while another 9 member states saw drops. The most significant such drops were recorded by Latvia (minus 8.3 percent), Spain (minus 7.7 percent) and Estonia (minus 7.2 percent).

At an annual pace, June 2008 on June 2007, the retail trade volume fell by 3.1 percent in the euro area (EA 15) and by 1.1 percent in the EU 27.

The retail trade in this June compared to May grew by 4.1 percent in Romania, with this being also the biggest rise in the EU 27. Sweden ranked 2nd with 1.7 percent rise and Poland 3rd with 0.5 percent rise.

As many as 13 EU member states posted shrinkages of their retail trade in June 2008 compared with the previous month, with the most significant such drop having been recorded in Austria ( minus 4.1 percent), Lithuania (minus 2.8 percent) and Portugal (minus 2.3 percent). The retail trade volume dropped by 0.6 percent in the euro area (EA 15) and by 1 percent in the European Union.