Latest data released by ONS - 22 October 2021
- Prior -0.9%; revised to -0.6%
- Retail sales -1.3% vs -0.4% y/y expected
- Prior 0.0%; revised to -0.2%
- Retail sales (ex autos, fuel) -0.6% vs +0.2% m/m expected
- Prior -1.2%; revised to -0.7%
- Retail sales (ex autos, fuel) -2.6% vs -1.7% y/y expected
- Prior -0.9%
That's a miss on estimates as UK retail sales activity unexpectedly slumped last month, though volumes were still seen 4.2% higher than pre-pandemic i.e. February 2020 levels.
Looking at the details, non-food store sales declined by 1.4% and that contributed mostly to the drop, offset by a rise in automotive fuel sales (+2.9%) and food store sales (+0.6%).
One thing to note is that the easing of restrictions hasn't exactly led to a material change in consumer behaviour. In-store retail sales are still subdued, with the proportion of online retail sales seen at 28.1% in September - much higher than the 19.7% in February 2020.
