- Furniture, clothing, sporting goods and games and toys all performed poorly
The High Street suffered a slump last month as retail sales fell 2.3 per cent.
Heavy rains and storms were blamed for the decline. Experts had predicted a decline of 0.4 percent.
Furniture, clothing, sporting goods, games and toys all performed poorly, the Office for National Statistics said.
Outages: Heavy rains and storms were blamed for the decline as there were only 79 percent of average sunshine hours in April
Turnover at fashion and shoe stores fell by 5.1 percent month-on-month, as demand for spring and summer collections fell. In April there was only 79 percent of the average sunshine hours.
The figures contradict the more optimistic mood seen in other economic indicators: a survey by data company GfK yesterday showed that consumer confidence has reached the highest level since the end of 2021.
Phil Monkhouse, UK country manager at global financial services firm Ebury, warned that even if the sun shines, some shoppers will continue to spend due to the uncertainty surrounding the election and interest rates.
Charlie Huggins of investment broker Wealth Club said: ‘Prices for most goods and services remain much higher than they were a few years ago. This continues to create a sense of caution.”
