Polish retail sales slid 2.3% year on year at constant prices in December (chart), after easing 0.3% y/y the preceding month, the statistics office GUS said on January 22. The reading is a negative surprise, as the consensus assumed an expansion of 1.7% y/y. Despite the December fall – which indicated an unusual refrain in Christmas spending – the fundamentals of a sustained recovery in consumption remain unchanged, analysts say. Fast-growing real wages, low unemployment rate and improving consumer sentiment are expected to lift the retail sector in 2024 from last year’s lull. “While it seems …