A “dismal” month for supermarkets led to UK retail sales falling in May at the fastest pace for more than a year, official figures show.
Sales volumes dropped 2.7% in May, the biggest monthly fall since December 2023, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Food retailers saw lower sales of alcohol and tobacco as households cut back, while clothing and household goods stores reported “slow trading”, the ONS said.
Separate figures on the UK economy showed that government borrowing rose last month, hitting the second highest level for May since monthly began in 1993.
Borrowing – the difference between spending and tax income – was £17.7bn, up £0.7bn from May last year.
The ONS said revenue from income tax and National Insurance contributions increased, but spending rose by more, partly due to inflation-linked uplifts to many benefits.
May’s fall in sales followed a 1.3% rise in April, when sales were boosted by sunny weather.
The good weather earlier this year led to people bringing forward home improvement projects, which meant demand for DIY goods fell in May.
The ONS figures show that sales volumes in the three months to May were still up by 0.8% compared to the previous three months, which is seen as a better guide to underlying trends.
However, Paul Dales, chief UK economist at Capital Economics, said the data added to “other evidence that the burst of economic growth” in the early part of the year “is over”.
He said some of May’s decline was due to the boost in April from the warm weather fading, but “the ONS also said retailers noted inflation was prompting consumers to cut back”.
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