Retail sales rise despite slower trading at clothing stores

Retailers had a surprisingly good month in January, as shoppers’ appetite for discount spending prompted the first monthly rise in sales volumes since last summer.

Sales volumes jumped 1.7%, according to official figures, bursting higher than analyst predictions of just 0.3% growth.

The figures marks a bounce back for the sector, which saw declining trade in December and for the final third of 2024 before that.

The rise was driven by food sales, which jumped by the highest amount since the start of Covid-19 lockdowns in March 2020.

The figures could signal a boost for Labour, as more spending at retailers tends to help economic growth, which the Government has said is its top priority.

However, trading was slower at clothes sellers and other non-food retailers, as sales fell by 1.3% during the month.

ONS Senior Statistician Hannah Finselbach said: "Retail sales rebounded strongly in January following four months of consecutive falls.

"However, clothing shops and household goods stores had less of a successful month with retailers reporting lacklustre sales due to weak consumer confidence.

"Looking at the broader picture, retail sales have decreased across the three-month period and are below pre-pandemic levels."

But Susannah Streeter, an analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, added there is "more spring in the step" of the sector.

"Shoppers appeared to defy the gloom and bought more food to cheer up the long winter nights," she added.

Some experts were less positive about the figures, with Alice Cowley, of consultancy Accenture, saying it is still "not the splash retailers will have wished for".

Meanwhile, Kris Hamer, Director of Insight at the British Retail Consortium, said: "2025 got off to a good start with retail sales managing to weather the stormy January. But, with consumer expectations for the economy falling almost 40pts since July 2024 and an unsteady job market, the next few months are hard to predict."