British merchants reported poor sales in November, said retail statistics data, which was impacted by the timing of the Black Friday deals. Nevertheless, the data indicated a decline in consumer confidence.
According to the British Retail Consortium, sales volumes declined 3.3 per cent in the 12 months ending in November, which was the lowest since April when they fell 4.0 per cent. This was also less than the 0.6 per cent growth that occurred in the year ending in October.
Although Black Friday sales in late November were included in last year’s comparison, they were not included in this year’s data, which is why last month’s fall was observed.
According to the BRC, non-food sales decreased 2.1 per cent year over year in the three months leading up to November, which was attributed to a drop in winter apparel buying. Sales of food rose 2.4 per cent during the time.
In November, essential spending shrank by 3.1 per cent, the largest yearly decline in more than five years, according to separate data from Barclays.
