In the first quarter of 2023, volume index of Wholesale & Retail Trade registered a growth of 9.5 per cent to reach 147.4 points as compared to the same quarter of the previous year. The positive quarterly growth was attributed to Retail Trade with 14.7 per cent, followed by Motor Vehicles and Wholesale Trade with 11.4 per cent and 3.5 per cent, respectively. Meanwhile, for quarter-on-quarter comparison, volume index rose 0.4 per cent in this quarter.

For seasonally adjusted volume index, Wholesale & Retail Trade increased 3.6 per cent as against the fourth quarter of 2022, supported by Motor Vehicles and Wholesale Trade sub-sectors of 7.2 per cent and 5.4 per cent, respectively.