In Croatia, retail consumption rose for the 21st consecutive month in December on an annual basis, indicating stable economic growth in the fourth quarter of last year.

The Croatian Bureau of Statistics published a report on retail trade turnover on Thursday, showing that in December, according to seasonally adjusted data, consumption increased by 0.7% compared to the previous month, while compared to December of the previous year, it rose by 6.5%.

Thus, retail consumption grew for the 21st consecutive month on an annual basis, at a similar rate to the previous month, when the growth was 6.7%.

Retail turnover from the sale of food, beverages, and tobacco products increased by 2.6%, while turnover from non-food products (excluding motor fuels and lubricants) rose by 10.5%.

Throughout the entire previous year, retail turnover increased by 7.3% in real terms compared to the previous year.

Since consumption is the largest component of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the strong retail trade turnover growth in December, as well as in previous months, indicates the continuation of stable economic growth in the fourth quarter of last year.

In the third quarter of last year, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) increased for the 15th consecutive quarter, growing by 3.9% on an annual basis.