Retail sales dropped to their lowest level in more than four and a half years in December, as rising prices start to bite.
The quantity bought in retail sales fell by 1.9 percent compared with November 2016, despite increasing by 4.3 percent on the year before.
Online sales experienced the sharpest drop, falling 5.3 percent in December from the month before. The December period didn’t include Black Friday sales, but did take into account Cyber Monday.
November’s Black Friday discount shopping day had made it “even harder for retailers to keep shoppers spending during December”, analysts at Lloyds said, with non-food retail stores taking the biggest hit.
Commenting on today’s official retail figures, Kate Davies, ONS Senior Statistician, said:
“Retailers saw a strong end to 2016 with sales in the final quarter up 5.6 percent on the same period last year, although the amount bought fell between November and December once the effects of Christmas are removed. There were some notably strong figures from smaller retailers, in particular butchers, who reported a significant boost in sales in the run up to Christmas.”
After experiencing a volatile week, the pound fell further on the news. The currency is currently down 0.30 percent against the dollar and 0.06 percent against the euro. The FTSE also faltered, dropping on the news but regaining ground to move up 0.07 percent at 7,212.30 (1044GMT).