Household goods drive surge in UK retail sales

Retail sales in the UK grew twice as fast as expected in July, with household goods including electricals seeing their highest increase in three years.

Figures from the Office for National Statistics show the volume of retail sales
rose by 0.4 per cent in July compared with June – double the 0.2 per cent predicted by the consensus economist forecast.

The ONS data also shows that the three months to the end of July saw an increase of 1.2 per cent, compared with the previous three months, while year on year sales were 3.3 per cent higher in July 2009 than July 2008.

Between June and July, household goods stores reported a rise in sales of 4.5 per cent – the highest since 2006. According to the ONS, the surge was primarily driven by furniture and electrical stores.

Other sectors did not fare as well – textile, clothing and footwear sales were down 0.4 per cent and food stores saw a drop of 1.0 per cent.