New official figures reveal that retail spending in the UK slumped more than anticipated last month, as shoppers were deterred by persistent rainy weather.
According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the volume of items purchased across the UK dropped by 2.3% in April, following a 0.2% decline in March. The March data has been revised downward from an earlier estimate of 0.0%.
Economists had predicted a softer decline of 0.6% for April, but the adverse weather conditions led to a sharper decrease.
Sales volumes decreased across most sectors, with clothing retailers, sports equipment stores, games and toy shops, and furniture outlets experiencing significant drops due to fewer shopping trips.
The UK faced storms and heavy rainfall in April, resulting in several flood warnings nationwide.
Non-food shops, including clothing and household stores, saw sales volumes plummet by 4.1% in April. Fashion and footwear retailers were hit particularly hard, with sales falling by 5.1% month-on-month, as poor weather impacted demand for spring and summer collections.
Despite the overall decline, department stores and online retailers were among the few sectors that saw an improvement in sales last month.
The latest data also shows a sharp drop in the value of sales, indicating that price increases and higher-cost purchases were insufficient to boost the cash generated by retailers.