by Samantha LovedayThe sales crisis on the High Street appears to be deepening, with more woe for retailers during April as sales fell to their lowest level in ten years, according to the British Retail Consortium.
Like-for-like sales slipped by 4.7 per cent against the same month in 2004, mainly due to Easter falling a month earlier this year.
However, BRC director general Kevin Hawkins told BBC's Radio 4 Today, that the figure is worse than anyone expected. Trade worsened in most categories on the High Street, especially in the case of occasional and non-essential purchases. White electrical goods and furniture also slowed.
Indeed, Dixons Group experienced a sales fall over the past six months, with UK sales falling two per cent in the 24 weeks ending April 30th. Likefor- like sales also dipped by the same amount. DSG has been forced to cut the prices of electrical goods like DVDs and flat screen TVs amongst tough competition from the likes of Asda, Tesco and Internet-based retailers.
PC World and The Link were the worst hit areas of the business, falling eight and nine per cent respectively over the 24-week period. The core Dixons chain fared better, with like-for-like UK sales up five per cent over the same period.
The company is still expecting to meet its full-year targets, but chief executive John Clare warned that the downturn is nowhere near over yet for retail. "I can't see where any good news will come from. The speed with which this has hit the retail sector and the fact that there is no end in sight could all point to this being worse than the downturn we experienced in the Nineties. A lot depends on how long it will last."
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