UK Retail Sales Continue to Grow

UK AUG RETAIL SALES +0.8% M/M; +2.8% Y/Y, ABOVE BBG +0.7% M/M

UK AUG RETAIL SALES EX-FUEL +0.6% M/M; +4.3% Y/Y

UK JUL TOTAL SALES REVISED AT +3.7% M/M

UK AUG RETAIL SALES DEFLATOR -1.2% Y/Y; EX-FUEL 0.0% Y/Y

UK retail sales ticked up 0.8% in Aug compared to Jul, slightly better than markets expected. This marks the fourth consecutive increase and sales are 4.0% higher in Aug than in Feb. While clothing and footwear showed the largest m/m uptick, sales in this category still remain 15.9% below Feb's pre-covid level. On the other hand, non-store retailing came in 38.9% above Feb. Consumers continue to purchase household goods, with sales up 9.9% compared to Feb. Online sales fell 2.5% on a monthly basis in Aug, however annual sales remain elevated at +51.6% and 46.8% above the level recorded in Feb, suggesting that high streets remain under pressure. Annual sales improved further as well, rising to 2.8%, to the highest reading since Oct 2019. The yearly uptick was mainly driven by another sharp increase in non-store retailing (+34.4%), followed by household goods (+11.3%).