UK retail closed the first quarter on a weak note but performed well throughout the three month period. In March, the industry’s sales fell by 0.9 percent compared to the previous month, as the statistics office ONS announced on Friday in London. Analysts had expected an average minus of 0.5 percent. In the first quarter as a whole, however, revenues increased by 0.6 percent.
In March, the development was mostly weak. Both sales of food and sales of other goods fell. Online trading also developed disappointingly. Fuel sales at filling stations alone increased. (dpa)