(BRUSSELS) - Retailers in the 15 countries sharing the euro saw stronger sales than expected in May, providing a rare ray of light for the bloc's increasingly struggling economy, official EU data showed on Thursday.

The volume of retail sales in the eurozone rose 1.2 percent from April and nudged up 0.2 percent over 12 months, the European Union's Eurostat data agency said.

The figures exceeded economists expectations for an increase of only 0.5 percent over one month and a fall of 0.6 percent over one year, as polled by Dow Jones Newswires.

The improvement followed on the heals of a slump in April when retail sales fell 0.6 percent over one month and tumbled 3.0 percent over one year, Eurostat said.

Despite the higher volume of sales in June, economists stressed that it would not reverse a weak trend in previous months and pointed out that the improvement was underpinned by stronger sales in Germany, Europe's biggest market.

"May's rebound in eurozone retail sales has done little to alter the underlying picture of weak spending growth in the region," said Jennifer McKeown at consultants Capital Economics.

Looking ahead, economist Howard Archer at consultants Global Insight said: "Despite May's pick up in retail sales, the prospects for eurozone consumer spending do not look good.

"Consumers' purchasing power is being squeezed markedly by elevated energy and food prices," he added.

"On top of this, tight credit conditions, higher interest rates, heightened concerns over the economic outlook and households' heightened worries about their personal finances are all negatives for consumption."

In the 27-nation EU, retail sales rose 1.3 percent in May from April and 2.0 percent over 12 months.

Further details - Eurostat

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