ADVERTISEMENT

Even Good Weather Couldn’t Save British Retail 

Even Good Weather Couldn’t Save British Retail 

(Bloomberg) --

U.K. retail suffered another lethargic month in August with sales on everything but food declining.

Overall retail sales slipped 0.5% in August on a like-for-like basis, according to a report by the British Retail Consortium and KPMG published Tuesday. Food items declined less than others, helped by good summer weather. In non-food items, furniture, toys and baby equipment performed particularly badly.

“August proved to be yet another incredibly disappointing month,” said Paul Martin, an analyst at KPMG. “It’s clear that for much of the retail market, efforts are being focused on preservation, not growth, in this adverse and uncertain climate.”

In-store purchases led the decline, down 3%, while online sales also disappointed, growing at around half their 12-month average last month.

The news suggests that worries about the economy are feeding through into consumer behavior as the Oct. 31 Brexit deadline approaches. Last week, figures from GfK showed consumer confidence at a six-year low.

A separate report by Barclaycard indicated that more people were flocking to discount shops. Fear of shortages in the event of a disruptive no-deal Brexit had caused many to start stockpiling certain goods, in particular young adults. A quarter of 18-34 year-olds reported building up reserves of everyday items such as tinned foods and household supplies.

Economic headwinds weren’t enough to stop Britons enjoying record summer weather though. Spending in pubs rose by more than 10% from last August.

To contact the reporter on this story: Eddie Spence in London at espence11@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Fergal O'Brien at fobrien@bloomberg.net, Brian Swint, Lucy Meakin

©2019 Bloomberg L.P.