Retail sales in Poland rose 4.4% year-on-year in January 2026, surpassing market expectations of 3.1% but easing from a 5.3% increase in December 2025. Sales slowed mostly for solid, liquid and gaseous fuels (4.6% vs 8.3% in December) and furniture, radio, TV and household appliances (10.5% vs 19.8%). Additionally, trade in motor vehicles, motorcycles, parts fell (-4.5% vs 13.1%). In contrast, sales increased faster for food, beverages and tobacco products (4.2% vs 1.9%), pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and orthopedic equipment (9.6% vs 8.4%), textiles, clothing and footwear (17.6% vs 6%), and newspapers, books, other sales in specialized stores (8.1% vs 1.4%). On a monthly basis, retail activity declined sharply by 17.8% in January, reversing a 12.5% growth in the previous month.
