The gloomy picture is fuelling fears of a recession, with the December fall being the biggest one recorded since January 2021, a period that was heavily affected by pandemic-related restrictions.
ADVERTISEMENTChristmas shoppers bucked the usual seasonal trend by spending less in December and leaving UK retail sales showing a fall of 3.2% on the previous month, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
November's figures were boosted by increased sales due to Black Friday discounts, especially in the non-food store sales volumes, which showed a rise of 2.7% for the month, the UK's statistics office explained. Sales in that category fell by 3.9% in December, suggesting UK shoppers had planned their Christmas spending ahead of time.
With the exception of November's figures, UK sales have been dropping, with the latest 2023 quarter down 0.9% compared with the previous one. UK sales fell overall last year by 2.8% on average, reaching their lowest level since 2018, the ONS said.
The gloomy picture is fuelling fears of a recession, with the December fall being the biggest one recorded since January 2021, a period that was heavily affected by pandemic-related restrictions.
Food store sales were also down by 3.1% last month, compared with November.
Jeremy Stern, ex-European director at Coca-Cola and now chief executive of promotions agency PromoVeritas, was quick to reassure.
"While there has been some doom-mongering about gloomy retail sales over Christmas, supermarket results have provided a blueprint for success for the sector," he said.
In a similar pattern to Black Friday where November discounts boosted the economy, some food stores saw an increase in sales last month.
"Tesco, Sainsbury's and Marks & Spencer all saw increases in grocery sales over the festive period. These silver linings of growth are thanks to strategic promotions and loyalty schemes," Stern said.
