UK retail sales volumes saw a decline of 0.3% in December 2024, following a marginal increase of 0.1% in November, according to the latest estimates from the country’s Office of National Statistics (ONS).
The dip in sales was particularly marked within food stores, which witnessed a decrease of 1.9% – the lowest index levels observed since April 2013.
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The decline was most acute among supermarkets, with specialist food retailers and retailers of alcohol and tobacco products also seeing falling sales volumes.
The downturn in sales was more severe than retailers had anticipated.
However, there was a partial recovery in non-food store sales volumes, which collectively rose 1.1% over the month.
Clothing retailers led the rebound with a 4.4% growth in December, from consecutive declines of 3.5% and 3.3% in November and October respectively.
Department stores and household goods vendors also reported an upswing in sales during the same period, attributing this positive outcome to robust Christmas shopping activity.
But non-store retailing, a sector encompassing online retailers as well as market stalls and other vendors without a traditional storefront, also fell during December.
Online spending values rose by 1.5% – the first monthly increase since September 2023.
December 2024 saw a 1.7% year-on-year rise in sales values, but a comparison between the fourth quarter (Q4, October to December) and Q3 (July to September) of 2024 revealed a more concerning 3.3% fall.
The aggregate expenditure for both in-store and online purchases edged up by 0.1% over the month, resulting in an elevated proportion of online sales which climbed from 26.5% to 27.0%.
A broader quarterly analysis revealed that sales volumes declined by 0.8% in Q4 compared to Q3 but registered a growth of 1.9% when compared with Q4 of the preceding year.
In the year to December 2024, sales volumes grew by 3.6% – particularly notable against the backdrop of a steep decline in December 2023.
Set against pre-pandemic sales volumes seen in February 2020, current volumes have shrunk by 2.5%.
