Cautious welcome for rise in sales

The latest figures showing a 1.3% real terms rise in sales in Scotland’s shops in August have been given a cautious welcome.

But industry body the Scottish Retail Consortium (SRC) has warned stores will continue to face challenges caused by pressure on household incomes and fragile consumer confidence.

Figures released today from the SRC-KPMG Scottish sales monitor show total food sales in August increased by 4.1% year-on-year, compared to a drop of 0.3% in the same month in 2016. Total non-food sales declined by 1.5%.

Ewan MacDonaldRussell, SRC’s head of policy and external affairs, said: “On the surface there is some good news in August’s figures. Real terms sales rose by

“Shops will have one eye on the SNP’s taxation plans”

1.3%, with customers taking advantage of early autumn ranges.

“Food continued to perform well, with a year-on-year increase of 4.2%, albeit that continues to be partially driven by food price inflation of 1.3%.”

Mr MacDonald-Russell said retailers would welcome the figures after a “pretty disappointing summer”.

He added: “However, the underlying challenges facing the industry, not least the continued pressure on household incomes and fragile consumer confidence, mean government should be very careful about any policies which could lead to increases to the cost of living.”

Sales increased by 1.9% on a like-for-like basis last month, compared with August 2016.

Craig Cavin, KPMG’s head of retail in Scotland, said: “Looking ahead, shop owners will have one eye on the Scottish Government’s taxation plans, to be announced in the coming weeks, as they look for greater support for the industry.”