Retail sales continued to fall throughout October as the cost-of-living crisis further impacted consumer spending behaviour.
According to the latest data from UK statistics company the Office for National Statistics (ONS), sales volumes excluding fuel dropped 6.7% year on year, continuing a downward trend seen since summer 2021.
In value terms, retail sales (excluding fuel) increased 2.9% – and 13.1% on pre-Covid levels – driven by rampant inflation across the UK market.
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Sales values slightly increased month on month, up 1.0% respectively, as September was impacted by store closures during Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral.
Online retail sales volumes rose 1.8% in October, following a drop of 2.5% in September, and the proportion of sales spent online was 26.1% for the month, which the ONS described as being a “broadly consistent” level since May this year.
The ONS data also suggested food stores suffered the steepest sales drop during the month, where volume sales fell by 1.0% for the month, 4.1% below the pre-Covid level seen in February 2020.
The news comes as data from McKinsey’s latest UK Consumer Pulse shows that UK consumers are increasingly looking for the best offers amid the cost-of-living crisis as 39% have switched retailers in the last three months.
“In response to inflation and the squeeze on household income, we see consumers trade down, switch to private label, as well being very open to changing retailers and brands,” McKinsey & Company senior partner, Anita Balchandani said.
