Retailers have suffered a disappointing April as an early Easter compounded stumbling consumer confidence because of the Middle East crisis, figures show.
Total UK retail sales were down 3% year on year, well below the 12-month average growth of 1.8%, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and KPMG.
This year’s earlier Easter in March meant food sales for April were deceptively low in comparison with last year, down 2.5%.
But non-food sales also decreased by 3.3%, below the 12-month average growth of 0.3%.
Taking March and April together, to even out the timing of Easter, total retail sales were up 1.5% year on year.
BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson said: “April’s sales fall was largely driven by the Easter shift, with food hit hardest. But weak consumer confidence also played a role as fears about the Middle East conflict driving up living costs led shoppers to rein in.
“Big-ticket purchases fell, with the recent recovery in furniture losing steam, and uncertainty around summer holidays hitting discretionary spend.
“With the World Cup coming, retailers hope it will provide a lift, and early signs show demand for TVs and sound systems picking up.”
Linda Ellett, UK head of consumer, retail and leisure markets at KPMG, said:
“It was a disappointing April for the retail sector, even factoring in an earlier Easter shifting some spending into March. Bar marginal growth for beauty, health and jewellery, retail sales fell across all other categories.
“Consumer confidence has been further dampened by rising prices due to the Iran conflict, with consumers cautious about potential ongoing effects.
“As a result, the retail sector is facing a challenging start to spring/summer, but there is hope that holiday demand and the World Cup still manage to unlock spending in the weeks and months ahead.”
Separate figures from Barclays show consumer card spending fell by 0.1% year-on-year in April, the first fall since November 2024.
A survey for the bank found almost three quarters of consumers (72%) expect tension in the Middle East to affect the cost of living throughout this year.
Spending on travel fell 5.7% in April, after a 3.3% drop in March, with spending on airlines down 8.3% as consumers cited concerns about travel costs (70%) and travel disruption (62%) in light of the Middle East conflict.
One in six (16%) said they were putting off holiday decisions until the outlook had stabilised.
Jack Meaning, chief UK economist at Barclays, said: “With uncertainty high both at home and abroad, it is unsurprising to see confidence falling. The key unknown for the UK outlook is how long this uncertainty will last.
“If confidence remains subdued for too long, and consumers continue to limit their spending as a result, it will be a challenge for households and businesses to weather the storm.”
