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| UK retail sales volumes rise by 0.1% | UK retail sales volumes rise by 0.1% |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| UK retail sales volumes rose by 0.1% in July, after falling the previous month, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has said. | UK retail sales volumes rose by 0.1% in July, after falling the previous month, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has said. |
| Strong growth in household goods sales helped to offset falls in sales of petrol and clothes. | Strong growth in household goods sales helped to offset falls in sales of petrol and clothes. |
| Compared with a year ago, sales rose by 4.2%. Both the monthly and annual figures were lower than expected. | Compared with a year ago, sales rose by 4.2%. Both the monthly and annual figures were lower than expected. |
| Average store prices fell by 3% year on year, largely due to an 11% fall in petrol prices. | Average store prices fell by 3% year on year, largely due to an 11% fall in petrol prices. |
| The price of petrol has fallen sharply on the back of a 50% slump in the oil price over the past 12 months. | |
| The ONS said that the biggest growth in sales were in electrical goods and furniture, both of which were up almost 20% on the month. | |
| Internet sales were up 13%, and accounted for 12.6% of all retail sales. | |
| The figures were a little lower than expected, partly because wage rises are rising faster than inflation, so in theory people should have more money to spend. | |
| "With wages increasing, falling fuel prices and with a low interest rate environment, discretionary spending has been boosted by rising real incomes," said Ian Geddes at Deloitte. | |
| "With more money in their pockets, consumers are choosing to spend their money on big ticket items. This is particularly the case for the furniture and household goods subsectors, with consumers making home improvements during the summer months." |