UK retail sales record biggest monthly drop since 2023

20/6/2025 15:22

British retail sales volumes recorded their sharpest drop since December 2023 last month, as demand fell after shoppers splurged on food, summer clothes and home improvements the month before, official figures showed on Friday.



Retail sales volumes dropped by 2.7% in May, the Office for National Statistics said, a much sharper decline than the median forecast of 0.5% in a Reuters poll.



Sales volumes were also 1.3% lower than a year earlier, the biggest annual drop since April 2024 and well below a Reuters poll forecast for 1.7% annual sales growth.



The monthly decline was mainly due to what ONS statistician Hannah Finselbach described as a "dismal month for food retailers" with lower spending on alcohol and tobacco, as well as reduced footfall at clothing stores and less demand for DIY items as dry weather had allowed work to be done earlier.



"The sharp 2.7% m/m drop back in retail sales volumes in May adds to other evidence that the burst of economic growth in Q1 is over. That said, consumer spending may still outperform other areas of the economy this year," Capital Economics' Chief UK Economist Paul Dales said.