British sales recover in February, says ONS

UK retail sales jumped in February against a backcloth of prices rising at their smallest year-onyear rate since January 2017, official data showed yesterday.

Retail sales volumes lifted 0.8 per cent on January, driven mostly by supermarkets, vehicle fuel and online shopping, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.

However the threemonth figure to February, which smooths out monthly volatility, shows sales fell by 0.4 per cent after poor sales in December and January.

The figures show retail prices rose in February by 2.5 per cent year-on-year, the smallest increase since January 2017.

Ben Brettell, senior economist at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “The champagne remains on ice. The monthly numbers are always volatile and the underlying trend is still one of weakness.

“There’s also a risk of further disappointment in March, with the Beast from the East bringing economic disruption and keeping consumers at home.”