Retail sales show signs of July recovery

Clothing store sales increased month-on-month by 11.9% in July, as more retail shops were allowed to resume trading. Despite this, clothing sales were still 25.7% below levels in February prior to the outbreak of Covid-19 in the UK, the Office for National Statistics reported. A better recovery was seen in household goods stores and other non-food stores in July, which were 6% and 2.2% respectively above February levels, although department stores sales were 5.1% down. Conversely, online retail sales fell by 7% and food store sales by 3.1% in July compared with June, as restaurants and bars reopened. However, online retail sales were still 50.4% higher than pre-pandemic levels in February. Overall total non-food store sales were 6.6% lower than before the UK’s lockdown in March. Retail sales volumes rose by 3.6% on June, and were 3% above February’s levels. To send feedback, e-mail louise.dransfield@egi.co.uk or tweet @DransfieldL or @estatesgazette Photo © Kelly Barnes/EPA-EFE/Rex/Shutterstock