- Previous +1.8%; Revised to +2.0%
- Retail sales +2.5% vs. +2.1% y/y expected
- Advance +4.5%; Revised to +4.8%
- Retail Sales (excluding motor vehicles and fuel) -0.4% vs. -0.8% monthly expected
- Advance +2.0%; Revised to +2.2%
- Retail sales (excluding motor vehicles and fuel) +3.4% vs. +2.9% y/y expected
- Previous +5.5%; Revised to +5.9%
The decline here is not as bad as expected, and comes despite a positive revision to January’s numbers. Despite the monthly decline, UK retail sales have remained healthy in the past few months, with the least volatile three-month reading showing retail sales rising 0.7% in the three months to February.
But when compared to the pre-pandemic level in February 2020, retail sales volumes were down 0.3% as of last month.
Looking at the details, the decline in February stemmed largely from a notable decline in home goods store sales (-2.6%). The Office for National Statistics attributes this to poor weather conditions, with retailers citing wet weather as a result of lower demand.
In addition, there was also a decline in sales of food stores (-0.7%) as well as sales of textile, clothing and footwear stores (-1.0%). Non-store retail also showed a decline of 0.5% month-on-month to add to this.
However, the landscape here will change dramatically once we see more of the impact of rising energy prices in the coming months. So, just keep that in mind.
