The latest retail traders survey shows that the business climate continues to flourish in Monaco. The car industry remains the strongest of all retail trades, experiencing significant growth over the past years.

According to the latest statistics by IMSEE, there were 801 retail establishments in operation in 2017, representing 8.6% of the total in the Principality.

More than 29% of those were created between 2013 and 2017 and half are less than 10 years old. The average age of these institutions is 14.4 years, compared to an average of 13 across all sectors.

With a total turnover of 1.4 billion euros in 2017, retail trade is the fourth largest contributor to the local economy, excluding sales and insurance. It’s positioned just behind wholesale trade; construction, scientific and technical activities; administrative and support services. It accounts for 10.6% of the Principality’s total revenue.

The automotive sector and personal equipment stores posted the strongest growth in terms of sales since 2001. In 2017, automotive sales accounted for 33.2% of all retail sales, six points more than in 2010. Automotive trade has seen an average annual growth of 7.2% since 2001, compared with 3.6% for traditional retail trade.

Retail trade is also the 7th largest sector in terms of employees. In December 2017, it recorded 2,769 employees, or 5.8% of the Principality’s total population. The majority of those are women, who represent 54.1% of all retail employees – the second most female dominated sector after the administration, education, health and social action industries.

But the proportion within the sectors varies greatly: 73.8% of employees in personal equipment stores are women, however that rate drops 22.1% in the automobile industry.