UK Retail Sales Fall Unexpectedly

(RTTNews) - UK retail sales declined unexpectedly in December on falling food store sales, data from the Office for National Statistics showed Friday. Retail sales volume decreased 0.3 percent on a monthly basis in December, in contrast to the revised 0.1 percent increase in November and confounding expectations for an increase of 0.4 percent.

Falls in supermarkets were partly offset by a rise in non-food stores, such as clothing retailers, which rebounded from falls in recent months, data showed.

Excluding auto fuel, retail sales declined 0.6 percent after a 0.1 percent gain in November. Sales were forecast to climb 0.1 percent.

On a yearly basis, retail sales grew 3.6 percent after remaining flat in November. However, growth was weaker than forecast of 4.2 percent.

Excluding auto fuel, retail sales volume posted 2.9 percent growth in contrast to the 0.5 percent decrease a month ago. Economists had forecast an annual growth of 3.6 percent.