Mubasher: German retailers saw a monthly decline in sales in May, according to preliminary data released on Tuesday.

Revenues in the retail trade fell by 0.6% in May in real terms, and by 0.4% in nominal terms, compared with the prior month, the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) said.

This came confounding to the expectations of a 0.5% growth, while dampening hopes that household spending will boost the growth of Europe’s biggest economy.

However, German retailers saw a better sales performance last May, as the turnover in the trade came in at 4% in real terms and 4.8% in nominal terms, when compared with the same month last year.

The annual growth was the result of strong sales in online commerce and delivery services providers.

The German economy has been depending on private consumption for growth, with the support from a robust labour market, low interest rates and rising wages.

However, the Bundesbank stated recently that the economic output will see a slight decline in the second quarter of this year.

By 1:35 pm GMT, the EUR/USD pair rose by 0.14% to $1.1302.