Retail sales in Britain saw a small increase in May as a drop in clothing sales was offset by a stronger performance from supermarkets.
The volume of retail sales rose 0.2% in May following strong growth of 0.9% in April, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics.
Clothes sales fell 1.6% between April and May, the biggest drop since September. The weather played its part, with the April figures boosted by warm weather, while last month was cooler than usual, deterring shoppers from buying summer clothes.
However, supermarkets and other food stores enjoyed strong sales, amid an ongoing price war. Food sales rose 0.6%, the biggest increase since December.
The figures also showed that average store prices, including at petrol stations, fell by 2.7% in May from a year earlier, marking the 11th month of year-on-year price falls. The biggest contribution came from petrol stations.
Chris Williamson, chief economist at economic survey firm Markit, said: “Retail sales growth slowed in May after a sunshine-related burst of spending in April, but the underlying trend remains impressively strong and adds to the likelihood of interest rates rising later this year rather than being delayed until 2016.“
Of every pound spent at retailers in May, 41p was spent in food stores; 42p in non-food stores; 10p at petrol stations; and 7p online and via mail order.
The ONS said that in recent months, the quantity bought in the food sector has increased and while average store prices have fallen, the amount spent has stayed flat.
“The underlying trend looks healthy,” said Howard Archer, chief UK economist at research group IHS Global Insight. “This maintains hopes that decent consumer spending can underpin significantly improved GDP [gross domestic product] growth in the second quarter.”
