Retail sales drop for fifth month in row

FEARS of a cost of living crisis have triggered a fall in retail sales for a fifth consecutive month while industry leaders are predicting further price rises ahead of Christmas.

Total retail sales in September dropped by 0.4 per cent in value and 0.6 per cent in volume – excluding petrol – compared with August, according to the Office of National Statistics.

Analysts suggested that families are tightening their belts against the background of higher energy bills.

The five month of falls is the longest period of decline in at least 25 years.

Helen Dickinson of the British Retail Consortium said: ‘Retailers will be concerned, with three in five warning of higher prices before Christmas.’

The main driver of the fall was an almost 10 per cent drop in sales of household goods stores, while the figure for furniture and lighting stores slumped by 14.8 per cent.