Retail investment: Widening gap between Europe’s retail markets

European retail markets are mostly in good shape at the start of the year. However, retail investors in Europe will need to adjust to a growing gap between robust retail markets and those that are subject to high risk in the long term. As Union Investment’s Global Retail Attractiveness Index (GRAI) shows, there are 25 points between the current top performer, Portugal, and the weakest market in Europe, Belgium. This difference is the largest that has been recorded for the index over the past 12 months.

“The ongoing positive economic climate in Europe, which is delivering rising revenues for online businesses as well as brick-and-mortar retailers in almost every country, is softening this trend at present. However, any sustained weakening of consumer sentiment is likely to cause retail markets to drift further apart,” said Henrike Waldburg, head of investment management retail at Union Investment.

The German retail market remains one of the top performers globally