Spending on high street sank in May
HIGH street sales plunged back to earth last month, as consumers reined in their spending.
April’s sunny weather and extra bank holidays had seen a bounce-back for the UK’s struggling retail sector, yet sales in May were down 2.1 per cent compared to the same time last year, on a like-for-like basis.
Total sales, which include expansions in shop floor space, were down 0.3 per cent compared to May 2010, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC).
“The first half of May was better than the second, when the weather turned unseasonably wet and cold in many parts of the country,” commented BRC chief Stephen Robertson.
Last month’s figures were also knocked by a boost in sales at the end of May 2010, when warm weather and the impending World Cup saw shoppers hit the stores.
Like-for-like sales over the past three months were down 0.4 per cent from the same time last year.
On the same measure, which reduces monthly volatility, like-for-like food sales were up 1.9 per cent, yet non-food sales fell by two per cent.
“It is particularly important for the economy that retail sales show some resilience, given that consumers have been far more prone to cutting back on their expenditure on consumer services than they have cutting back on retail sales,” commented Howard Archer of IHS Global Insight.
“Consumer spending accounts for 65 per cent of GDP,” Archer added.