British retail sales dip more than forecast in October

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British retail sales fell much more than expected in October as consumers purchased fewer clothes and food ahead of the Budget.

The quantity of goods bought in Great Britain fell 0.7 per cent between September and October, following a downward revised growth of 0.1 per cent the previous month, the Office for National Statistics said on Friday.

Economists polled by Reuters expected a contraction of 0.3 per cent.

ONS senior statistician Hannah Finselbach said: “The fall was driven by a notably poor month for clothing stores, but retailers across the board reported consumers held back on spending ahead of the Budget.”

Separate data from the research company GfK showed consumer confidence recovered 3 points in November to minus 18, reversing some of the fall of the previous two months.