UK retail sales rose 1.8% on a like-for-like basis, compared with August 2006, when sales were up 2.5%. The three-month trend rate of growth was unchanged from July, at 2.1% for like-for-like sales, and slipped to 4.0% from 4.1% for total sales, reflecting the continuing growth of retail space.
Sunnier weekends helped food, clothing and footwear sales to pick up from a poor July, but growth remained weaker than earlier this year.
Furniture and homewares fell back after good gains in June and July, which were driven by aggressive discounting in clearance sales. DIY and gardening were broadly unchanged and still weather-dependent.
Consumer confidence is being hit by interest rate rises. Consumers are cautious about committing to big purchases: heavy discounting is often needed to persuade them to buy.
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British Retail Consortium
marketing@alchempro.com
