According to Swedish Trade, one reason for the pessimism is that traders are facing sharp cost increases at the same time as sales are decreasing as a result of consumers’ purchasing power having been greatly weakened.
“It is very worrying, and the cost increases must be mitigated,” says Sofia Larsen, CEO of Svensk Handel in a press release.
Retail trade, however, accounts for a smaller rise of 1.7 percentage points in the month’s Trade Barometer and lands at an indicator value of 71.9 – significantly below the neutral value of 100. It is above all the grocery trade that contributes to the rise.