UK retail sales beat forecasts - ONS
By Abigail Townsend
Date: Friday 28 Mar 2025
(Sharecast News) - UK retail sales jumped in February, official data showed on Friday, comfortably beating expectations.
According to the Office for National Statistics, retail sales volumes rose by 1% last month.
That was down on January's revised 1.4% increase, but well ahead of consensus for a 0.3% fall. Sales volumes were also at their highest since July 2022.
Driving the growth were non-food sales, which grew "strongly", the ONS said, and helped offset softer supermarket volumes.
Non-food stores, which include department, clothing and household retailers, rose by 3.1%. Jewellers reported strong demand for gold, in light of mounting geopolitical uncertainty, while household stores saw a 6.8% spike, the largest monthly rise since April 2021.
In contrast, food stores sales volumes fell 2% on the month, following a bumper 4.8% rise in January.
Year-on-year, overall retail sales volumes were 2.2% stronger.
In the three months to February, sales volumes rose 0.3% or by 2% year-on-year.
The ONS revised January's figure down to 1.4% from its initial estimate of 1.7% growth.
Email this article to a friend
or share it with one of these popular networks:
You are here: news
10 Lower Thames St,
London EC3R 6EN