BUSINESS SALES
RETAIL SALES
Retail sales decline slows
ONS data shows the proportion of sales made online has fallen to its lowest level since March 2020.
T
he decline in UK retail sales slowed in June as grocery stores were boosted by shoppers celebrating the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The ONS data reveals that food store sales volumes increased by 3.1%, picking up after a recent downward trend for the sector as people returned to restaurants and pubs after the easing of pandemic restrictions. Fuel sales saw a sharp drop for the month, falling 4.3% in response to a record jump in petrol prices in June. The sales decline was the biggest since October last year, when labour shortages
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and supply issues led to shortages at forecourts across the UK. The ONS said that consumers’ appetite for internet shopping also continued to decline, as the proportion of sales that were made online fell to 25.3% in June, the lowest since the 22.8% recorded in March 2020. Total retail sales fell by 0.1% in June as the increase in food sales was more than offset by the slump in fuel sales. It came after a heavier than previously thought slump in retail sales in May, with the ONS revising down its original prediction of a 0.5% decline to 0.8%. Heather Bovill, ONS Deputy Director for surveys and economic indicators,
said: “After taking account of rising prices, retail sales fell slightly in June and although they remain above their pre-pandemic level, the broader trend is one of decline. After a fall in May, food sales picked up due to the jubilee celebrations, but this was the only sector to report an increase.” Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive of the British Retail Consortium, added: “The cost-of-living crunch caused by record inflation continues to damage consumer confidence and stifle household spending. Discretionary spending and particularly bigger purchases were put off as consumers become increasingly concerned about the future.”
