German retail sales increased in May, another sign of German economic recovery, official data showed on Friday.
When adjusted for calendar, seasonal and inflation various, retail sales in May 2013 grew by 0.8 percent from the previous month. Compared with a year earlier, turnover in retail trade was 0.4 percent larger, said German Federal Statistical Office.
This is another positive sign for German economy's recovery. Unemployment rate in the largest European economy dropped to 6.6 percent in June, proving a stable labor market amid the deterioration of other eurozone neighbors.
Earlier this week, Nuremberg-based market research company GfK said that its forward-looking overall indicator for consumer mood is 6.8 points for July 2013, the highest since September 2007. Consumers' optimism came from the stable labor market and moderate inflation.
Against the backdrop of sluggish global economy, private consumption was considered as the main engine for the traditionally export-oriented economy of Germany.
German economy only grew by 0.1 percent in the first three months of 2013, when most parts of the country was still in an extremely long and cold winter, following a drop of 0.7 percent in the last quarter of 2012.
Bundesbank, the central bank of Germany, predicted that German economy would improve further in the second quarter. German government forecasted gross domestic product to grow by 0.5 percent over the whole year of 2013, and by 1.6 percent in 2014. /.