In March 2016, compared with March 2015, retail sales went up by 1% nominal terms and 3.5% in real terms and by 0.1% in nominal terms.
This is a faster growth than the month before when consumption was up 3.2% on the year.
Four economic analysts polled by Hina had projected an average increase in retail sales in March of 4.2%, their projections ranging from 4% to 4.5%.
March 2016 was the 19th month in a row to record a rise in retail sales.
Analysts at Raiffeisenbank Austria (RBA) said in their comment on the DZS report that they expected a further rise in retail sales in the coming months.
They, however, warned that any substantial growth might be limited by internal structural problems, in particular the situation on the labour market which is reflected in low employment and weak purchasing power.