According to the latest Office for National Statistics figures, volume sales from March to May were 0.3 per cent higher than the previous three months. This is a leap from the three-month trend of 0.1 per cent growth in April.
However, levels are down considerably on the same period last year. The three-month growth was 1.8 per cent up on last year, the lowest rate of year-on-year growth the industry has experienced since March 1999.
Average weekly sales for May were£4.6 billion, 0.3 per cent higher than the comparable period the year before. Department stores suffered the most, with a drop in sales values of 5 per cent for the month compared with the same period last year. Household goods stores also fared badly, with a fall of 2.9 per cent. This performance was offset by gains in the value of food sales, which increased by 3 per cent compared with the same period last year.
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