Retail sales jump as consumers splash out

Retail sales jumped last month, as shoppers sought out purchases ranging from watches to furniture, industry data showed on Tuesday.

According to the latest BRC-KPMG Retail Sales Monitor, total sales increased by 11.9% in January, compared to a 1.3% decline in January 2021, when the UK was in lockdown. On a year-on-two-year basis, total retail sales grew by 7.5%.

On a like-for-like basis, sales increased 8.1% compared to January 2021, when they rose 7.1%.

The British Retail Consortium said household appliances, electronics and homeware had performed well, as had furniture. Footwear and clothing, along with jewellery and watches, also performed strongly.

In comparison, food sales were muted, as restrictions brought in to tackle the spread of the Omicron variant were eased and people started eating out again.

In the three months to January, food sales decreased by 0.5% on a like-for-basis and by 0.1% on a total basis. That was below the 12-month total average growth of 2.4%.

Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the BRC, said: "It is encouraging to see such strong sales in January, even once inflation has been accounted for. Furniture was the stand-out performance, after transport delays in the Christmas period began to ease."

However, looking ahead she cautioned: "Retailers and consumers face challenges in the coming months.

"Retailers face competition from other spending opportunities, as the public flood back to restaurants, cafes and live events. Furthermore, rising inflation - driven by higher costs of production, higher energy and transport prices as well as other looming price hikes - will mean consumers will have to tighten their purse strings."

Paul Martin, UK head of retail at KPMG, said: "This unusually strong performance for January, which is traditionally a slower month, should be put in the context of last year’s lockdown.

"With Covid restrictions now eased, and people heading back to workplaces, retailers will be hoping consumer confidence remains robust to help offset the rising cost challenges that are likely to persist for a while. We could see a challenging few months ahead if wider macroeconomic conditions start to squeeze household incomes to the point that they start cutting back on retail spending."

The January data also pointed to consumers heading back into physical stores. Online non-food sales fell 24.2% in January, compared to growth of 83.0% a year previously, although on a year-on-two year basis sales increased by 31.8%.

In contrast, in the three months to January, in-store sales of non-food items grew 67.6% or by 54.0% on an underlying basis. This was above the total 12-month average growth of 51.1%.