UK shoppers unexpectedly increased spending in October as they brought forward Christmas shopping ahead of November’s closure of most non-essential retailers.
UK retail sales rose for the sixth consecutive month, increasing 1.2 per cent in October, data from the Office for National Statistics showed on Friday.
October’s monthly increase was much stronger than the no-change forecast by economists polled by Reuters.
Jonathan Athow, deputy national statistician for economic statistics at the ONS, said: “Despite the introduction of some local lockdowns in October, retail sales continued its recent run of strong growth.
“Feedback from shops suggested some consumers may have brought forward their Christmas shopping, ahead of potential further restrictions. Online stores also saw strong sales, boosted by widespread offers.”
Online sales, household goods and department stores all reported strong growth, with a monthly increase above 3 per cent. Compared with October last year, retail sales were up 5.8 per cent.
Retail sales have performed better than other parts of the economy as consumers switched from services, such as going to the gym, to buying goods including sports equipment.
However, analysts expect sales to fall again this month as most non-essential shops closed when the lockdown was introduced in England on November 5.
Samuel Tombs, chief UK economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, forecast sales to drop 10 per cent in November compared with the previous month. This is a smaller fall than during the spring’s nationwide lockdown, reflecting that “both consumers and retailers have adapted to placing and fulfilling orders online, while non-essential retailers can remain open for click-and-collect orders”.
In the EU, retail sales already contracted in September as many economies faced an earlier spike of infections and tightening restrictions.