Retail sales in Great Britain weaker than expected despite early Black Friday deals
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Sales volumes up 0.2% month on month in November but economists had forecast 0.5% rise. Retail sales in Great Britain were weaker than expected in November despite stores starting to cut prices early as part of Black Friday discounting in the run-up to the key Christmas shopping season.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said sales volumes rose 0.2% month on month in November, falling short of the 0.5% that economists had forecast. However, the figures provided glimmer of hope after a 0.7% slump in sales in October, which is meant to kick off the crucial “golden quarter” of trading for the sector, when many high street retailers make all or most of their annual profits.
Retailers are hoping that Black Friday, which this year fell on 29 November and combined with payday for many, would have resulted in an increase in spending in the lead-up to Christmas. However, a full view of its impact will only be available in December’s figures, released next month.
The November figures – covering the four weeks from 27 October to 23 November – only captured early Black Friday promotions, with some retailers starting to offer discounts in the run-up to the imported US shopping event and its online counterpart, Cyber Monday.
However, those early promotions did not help clothing retailers, with their sales falling for a second straight month. Clothing retail volumes fell by 2.6% in November to their lowest level since January 2022, with businesses reporting that economic factors were affecting sales.
