Swiss retail sales climbed for the first time in six months in January, though slightly, provisional results from the Federal Statistical Office showed Tuesday.

Real turnover in the retail sector edged up 0.2 percent year-over-year in January, reversing a 1.7 percent decrease in December, which was revised from a 1.6 percent fall reported earlier.

Excluding fuel, retail sales climbed 0.6 percent at the beginning of the year, in contrast to December’s 1.5 percent decline.

On a monthly basis, retail sales dropped a seasonally adjusted 0.3 percent in January, after rebounding 0.9 percent in the preceding month. Sales without fuel also decreased by 0.2 percent.

In nominal terms, retail sales slid 1.3 percent annually in January and fell 0.5 percent from the preceding month.

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