Retail Sales Volume Down In June

The volume of retail sales decreased by 5.2% in June 2008 compared to June 2007.

There was a monthly decrease of 0.7%. If Motor Trades were excluded there was an annual decrease of 1.8% and the monthly change was -1.9%.

The value of retail sales decreased by 1.8% in June 2008 compared to June 2007 and decreased by 0.4% in the month. However, if Motor Trades are excluded, the annual increase was 1.9% and the monthly change was -1.7%.

May 2008 is the latest month for which final detailed figures are available. The three-month March 2008-May 2008 volume figures show that, all sectors declined with the largest decrease in the volume of sales in the Electrical Goods (down 10.1%) sector, compared with the three months ending February 2008.