Austria

In 2023, a decline in the amount of time spent at home post-pandemic led to a concomitant reduction in the use of air care products, thereby constraining volume growth in this area. Economic uncertainties and inflation also prompted local consumers…

Air treatment products recorded a decline in retail volume in 2023, driven by a strong decline in air purifiers and coolers. However, sales were positive for air conditioners, including portable room air conditioners and split air conditioners, with…

Sharp price increases for a second year in a row failed to significantly dampen the strong demand for travel, and passenger numbers recovered strongly to move towards the 2019 pre-pandemic level. In 2022, sharp increases in fuel and energy prices,…

In 2022, alcoholic drinks witnessed a strong recovery in on-trade sales, which came at the expense of off-trade sales. As COVID-19 became manageable and public life normalised, consumers resumed their going out habits, resulting in a significant…

While sales of analgesics are seeing mid-single-digit growth in current value terms in 2023, sales have seen a steep decline in retail volume terms. The main reason for this disparity between value and volume growth in analgesics is the sharp rise in…

Given the economic uncertainty at the end of the review period, Austrian consumers purchased fewer apparel accessories. While the boom in fashion face masks (“other” apparel accessories) ensured a positive retail volume growth performance overall in…

After two challenging years due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the recovery of apparel and footwear started in earnest in 2022, but retail volume sales did not return to the 2019 level. On the other hand, high inflationary pressure on…

Although disposable income slowly recovered in 2023 compared to repeatedly high inflation, consumers remained relatively frugal in their spending on apparel and footwear. Many made savings by opting for apparel or footwear and reduced their shopping…

Consumer restraint affected the entire retail market in 2023, but appliances and electronics specialists was one of the categories most negatively affected.

Vienna is set to remain Austria's most populous city by 2027 while Linz leads in disposable income per capita. Austria's cities boast high internet connectivity, paving the way for 5G network adoption and digital transformation. Salzburg, Graz and…

Austria’s population is set to expand quickly in 2021-2040 determined by elevated rates of net migration. Like elsewhere in Europe, ageing will remain a key demographic trend, putting pressure on government resources and impacting consumer spending…

Away-from-home tissue and hygiene in Austria registered a positive performance in current value terms in 2023, following the significant growth of the previous year. However, this was mainly due to prevailing inflationary pressures, as rising raw…

In 2022, baby and child-specific products registered modest retail volume growth and a strong increase in retail current value sales. Higher prices in line with high inflation in the country pushed retail value sales at the end of the review period.…

Prepared baby food continues to generate a substantial part of baby food's current retail value sales, with glass jars and pouches being extremely popular due to the high levels of convenience they offer. As such, prepared baby food is set to…

Baked goods experienced mixed fortunes in 2023 with the category registering positive growth in current value terms by a small decline in retail volume terms. The main factor influencing the rise in sales in value terms was inflationary pressures…

Overall, in 2022, bath and shower saw a drop in retail volume sales and slow growth in retail current value sales, underpinned by higher prices. However, performances varied strongly from category to category. Having seen exponential growth in 2020,…

Overall, beauty and personal care continued to recover from the effects of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis. Beauty and personal care was shaped by the return of the demand for most types of beauty and personal care, in particular for products that…

Just like alcoholic drinks as a whole, beer was characterised by a strong recovery of on-trade sales at the cost of off-trade sales in 2022, when COVID-19 finally became a manageable problem and public life and the going out habits of consumers…

Post-COVID-19, sales of bleach have been declining in Austria due to growing consumer concerns about its strong chemical composition. During the pandemic, local consumers sought strong cleaners to reduce the risk of infection. Although many consumers…

In 2022, Austrian consumers were still very uncertain as a result of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. They tended to err on the side of caution, booking complete travel packages via travel agencies. Otherwise, they preferred to book hotels…

Bottled water recorded positive total volume growth in 2023. However, this was driven by on-trade sales as more consumers shifted back to purchasing and consuming bottled water on the go or at food service outlets, gyms, work and events. Off-trade…

Sales of breakfast cereals in Austria experienced a notable rebound in 2023 following the decline in retail volume sales observed in the previous year. Shifting consumer preferences, increased product innovation and evolving lifestyle trends all…

Austria’s economic freedom ranking remains high, indicating a competitive business environment. The country’s businesses benefit from economic and political stability, low barriers to trade, a skilled labour force, and high capacity for innovation.…

Following the record-high growth rates for Butter during 2022, due to inflation and the higher cost of energy, boosting price points, the average unit price of Butter slightly declined in 2023. The amount of special offers for branded butter products…

In 2023, Austria experienced exceptionally high inflation for the second consecutive year, which reduced consumer incomes and dampened spending in almost all areas of consumer foodservice. This inflationary environment led to increased energy,…

While carbonates total volume sales grew slightly in 2023, this was achieved through on-trade channels, with retail sales facing the consequences of changing consumer behaviours.

Cat food recorded further growth in current value terms in 2023, despite a double-digit decline in volume. This was mainly due to inflationary pressures, as manufacturers passed on the rising costs of raw materials to consumers. The trend towards…

Driven by a shift from cash to card payments, boosted by the outbreak of COVID-19 and the continuing recovery of travel, charge cards saw solid growth in transaction and value terms. However, growth was at a slower pace compared to credit and debit…

Austria is a country with a strong tradition of cheese-making, and the consumption of a wide range of cheese remains very popular in the country, leading cheese to account for the largest share of value sales within overall dairy products and…

Purchasers of childrenswear focused on quality and less at quantity as they became more mindful of personal finances and textile waste. Still high inflation in 2023 translated into retail current value growth, despite the decline in retail volume…

The demand for chocolate confectionery remained stable in 2023, with a slight increase in volume terms but a solid rise in value sales. Value growth stemmed largely from increases in average unit prices. The overall rate of inflation in the country…

Similar to the overall alcoholic drinks market, cider/perry experienced a strong rebound in on-trade sales at the expense of off-trade sales in 2022, as the COVID-19 situation improved and consumer habits returned to normal. This resulted in…

In 2023, the retail value sales of cigarettes in Austria continued their downward trajectory, dropping below pre-COVID-19 volume sales levels of 2019. During the pandemic, cigarette consumption had seen a temporary boost due to increased consumption…

Volume sales of cigars and cigarillos continued to decrease in Austria in 2023, but at a significantly slower rate than cigarettes. Demand for these products experienced a strong push during the pandemic, and volume sales for both cigars and…

Retail value sales of coffee continued to grow in 2023, recording positive double-digit results. However, these results were mainly driven by rising inflation and product price increases. As such, while value sales rose, retail volume sales declined,…

Colour cosmetics registered a dynamic performance in 2022. Colour cosmetics posted weak performances due to low consumer demand in 2020 and 2021, largely determined by the exigencies of Coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdowns. Consumers spent more time at…

The commodities country overview provides comprehensive data on production, consumption and price trends on key commodities markets. The commodities overview in Austria covers production and consumption trends in agricultural commodities, energy…

There is expected to be a further strong decline in retail volume sales across computers and peripherals in Austria over 2023. There was a shift in demand towards specialised products in the wake of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, as consumers…

With consumers spending less time at home, and experiencing busier, more hectic everyday lives again, the use of concentrates became less frequent in 2023, leading to a decline in off-trade volume sales. However, results were positive for the…

In 2019, Western European construction recorded output of USD4,588 billion despite a slight slowdown in major economies. The COVID-19 crisis in 2020 and related uncertainty led to residential and commercial construction contracting. Rising…

In 2023, demand for consumer appliances declined for the third consecutive year in Austria. Retail volume sales were still noticeably impacted by the increase in purchases during COVID-19, when consumers invested more in consumer appliances due to…

Consumer credit has experienced a significant drop in all areas of gross lending in 2023. In light of the sharp increases in the cost of living since 2022, Austrians have generally been frugal with expenditure. Individuals are focused on meeting…

Price increases remained noticeably high in many categories towards the end of the review period. This is the main reason consumer electronics is projected to see only a slight drop in retail value sales, at least in current terms, over 2023, with…

Austria experienced exceptionally high inflation once again in 2023, reducing consumer incomes and dampening spending in almost all areas of consumer foodservice. Foodservice operators faced increased costs in energy, materials and labour, which were…

2023 was the first year since the pandemic when consumer foodservice in Austria did not face any access or opening restrictions, which naturally led to an increase in footfall and transactions. However, inflation remained unusually high for the…

The World Health Organisation declared the end of the COVID-19 health crisis in 2023 with this having an overall negative impact on sales of consumer health in retail volume terms. For example, demand for products with a strong focus on immune health…

Loans became more expensive for consumers in 2023, as a result of the European Central Bank's interest rate policy, with rates rising in response to high inflation in the EU since the energy crisis broke out in 2022 and the war in Ukraine began. The…

Just like grocery retailers as a whole, convenience retailers saw strong growth in value sales in 2023, although this was almost entirely price driven as inflation remained at unusually high levels for a second consecutive year. Demand itself only…

Sales in cooking ingredients and meals continued to stabilise in Austria in 2023. This is thanks to inflation starting to slow down, thus resulting in more stable food prices. For example, we can note this in edible oils, which was a category…

Cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies received a strong sales boost in 2022 due to consumers returning to working in the office more frequently again and kids returning to in-school classes. This led to consumers spending more time among other…