The National Bureau of Statistics (DZS) on Friday released its initial estimate according to which retail sales in August remained unchanged in nominal terms, but increased by 0.9 per cent in real terms in comparison with August 2014.
Four economic analysts polled by Hina had expected an increase of 3% on average, their projections ranging from 2.2% to 3.9%.
It was a considerably slower rise than in July 2015 when consumption increased by 4.5% in comparison with July 2014, which was the largest increase in nearly eight years.
Analysts said that the increase in retail sales in recent months was due to tax changes that took effect at the start of the year, which spurred wage growth and contributed to a record tourist season.
Further consumption growth is expected to have a positive impact on GDP.
Stronger personal consumption was one of the main reasons why the Croatian economy grew by 1.2% in the second quarter of the year, the largest increase since the third quarter of 2008.