18/01/2013

ONS Reveal 0.1% Fall In UK Retail Sales

Retail sales in the UK fell 0.1% in December, traditionally the busiest shopping month of the year.

The new figures issued by the Office for National Statistics show the fall compared to December 2011, when sales rose a worse-than-expected 0.3% and highlight the ongoing difficulties facing the high street.

Within just the last 10 days administrators have been called in to Jessops, HMV and Blockbuster.

The figures show that high street and online spending in the three months to December, accepted as a better indicator of the underlying trend, fell overall by 0.6%.

Supermarkets, department stores and household retailers appear to have suffered most, with discounting seemingly helping clothing and footwear retails perform slightly better.

The ONS said that only an increase in fuel sales, following a price drop, prevented a larger fall. With fuel excluded the total fall in retail sales for December was 0.3%.

(H/GK)




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