Retail sales strengthen in June

Retail sales bounced back by a healthy 1 per cent in June in an unexpected boost for the sector, official figures show.

Monthly retail sales volumes jumped 1 per cent after May’s 0.5 per cent month-onmonth drop in volumes driven by unseasonably cold weather, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

It noted that the bounce in June came on the back of growth in non-food stores and a surprise increase in sales of second-hand goods.

However, department store sales declined for a sixth consecutive month.

Online sales as a proportion of all retailing fell to 18.9 per cent last month, from the 19.3 per cent reported in May.

Year-on-year figures also show a robust 3.8 per cent increase to beat all forecasts, although sales over the three months to the end of June grew by just 0.7 per cent, the weakest reading since the three months to February.

ONS statistician Rhian Murphy said: “Retail as a whole saw a return to growth in the month of June, mainly due to growth in non-food stores with increased sales in second-hand goods, including charity shops and antiques.”

Philipp Gutzwiller, head of retail at Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, said: “Despite a dip in sales during the spring, these figures cap a relatively strong first half of the year for the majority of the UK’S retailers. Big-ticket purchases have generally remained on the back burner, but the appetite for smaller ‘feel good’ items such as homeware is clearly delivering healthy opportunities for some.”

Euan Murray, relationship director at Barclays Corporate Banking in Scotland, said the latest ONS data shows retailers are “extremely resilient and have demonstrated that they can keep the tills ringing even when faced with a difficult trading environment”.

The figures go against a British Retail Consortium survey that showed sales fell in the year to June.