August UK sales up overall
Summer food and drink favoured over fashion
September 18 2003
UK retail sales rose in August, with Office for National Statistics figures showing a 0.2 per cent increase over July, and a 3.8 per cent rise on August 2002.
The ONS said that the record temperatures in August boosted sales of food and drink, a trend already reported by the supermarkets, as well as confirming the reports by retailers such as Next and French Connection that clothing sales suffered during the hot weather. Clothes sales through both high street retailers and mail order operators were down.
Household retailers also generally saw slower sales, although department stores, like supermarkets, saw an increase in monthly sales.
In the three months to August, overall sales rose 1.8 per cent on the previous three months, the strongest growth seen so far in 2003. Growth in the three months to August was 4.9 per cent over the same period a year ago.
