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Lacklustre retail sales in Christmas period

Lacklustre retail sales in Christmas period
Emma Lunn
Written By:
Posted:
20/12/2024
Updated:
20/12/2024

Retail sales volumes across the country rose by 0.2% month-on-month in November, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

November is a key month for retailers and the sales are weaker than expected – economists had forecast a 0.5% rise.

The latest figures follow a 0.7% fall in October, when shoppers were grappling with Budget uncertainty. Over the year to November 2024, sales volumes rose by 0.5%.

When compared with their pre-pandemic level in February 2020, volumes were down by 1.6%.

Food stores’ sales volumes increased for the first time in three months, rising by 0.5% in November 2024, most strongly within supermarkets.

Non-food stores’ sales volumes – the total of department, clothing, household and other non-food stores – rose 0.2% over the month, with a strong positive contribution from other retail sales.

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This sub-sector rose by 7.9% in November, rebounding from a 7.1% fall in October 2024. Household goods stores rose by 1.1%, with furniture stores having the largest upward contribution to growth.

Partly offsetting this, clothing stores’ sales volumes fell by 2.6% in November, following a 3.5% fall in October 2024. This left clothing stores’ sales volumes at their lowest level since January 2022, with retailers reporting that economic factors were affecting sales.

The official Black Friday was on 29 November 2024 and outside of the ONS’ November reporting period, which covers the four weeks from 27 October to 23 November 2024. However, many stores started their Black Friday sales earlier in November this year.

Danni Hewson, head of financial analysis at AJ Bell, said: “Considering November falls right in the middle of the crucial ‘golden quarter’ for retailers, this latest set of figures won’t get Champagne corks popping.

“Though the period doesn’t cover that now ubiquitous Black Friday weekend, which shoppers tend to hang on for in the hopes that what’s on Santa’s list this year might get marked down, it does take in the late half-term holiday.

“To put it bluntly, consumers had the rug pulled out from under them in the run-up to the Budget and anecdotal evidence suggests they were still being cautious with their cash in the days that followed.”