Investing.com - Retail sales in the euro zone rose less than expected in July, underlining concerns over the region’s economic outlook, official data showed on Thursday.
In a report, Eurostat said retail sales increased by a seasonally adjusted 0.4% in July, missing forecasts for a rise of 0.6%. Retail sales fell by 0.2% in June, whose figure was revised from a previously reported decline of 0.6%.
Year-over-year, retail sales in the euro zone rose at an annualized rate of 2.7% in July from a year earlier, above expectations for a gain of 2.0% and after rising 1.7% in June.
EUR/USD was trading at 1.1236 from around 1.1240 ahead of the release of the data, while EUR/GBP was at 0.7366 from 0.7369 earlier.
Meanwhile, European stock markets remained higher. The EURO STOXX 50 rose 1.4%, France's CAC 40 tacked on 1.4%, Germany's DAX jumped 1.7%, while London’s FTSE 100 advanced 1.8%.