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Sales and orders grew at a stronger rate than had been expected in the year to September with the pace of growth expected to continue into October.
This is according to the Confederation of British Industry’s (CBI) latest Distributive Trades Survey. The survey of 119 firms showed that sales volumes were well-above average for the time of year, to the greatest extent since April 2007.
Orders placed on suppliers also grew at their quickest pace since December 2007.
According to the survey, 60% of retailers said that sales volumes were up in September compared with the previous year, while 11% said they were down. This gave a balance of +49%, which was above the expectation of +35%.
Some 39% of retailers places more orders on suppliers than they did during the same month last year, while 9% placed fewer. This gave a balance of +30% but orders are expected to strengthen further next month to 44%.
Meanwhile, 41% of retailers said sales volumes were above average for the time of year, whilst 6% said they were below average, giving a balance of +35% – the highest since April 2007 (+36%).
Rain Newton-Smith, director of economics at CBI, said: “As the summer has been drawing to a close, consumers have been out on the high street boosting sales and orders for UK retailers.
“Low inflation and the recovery in wage growth are helping to stimulate consumer demand, but the slowdown in the global economy and tight margins mean retailers won’t get ahead of themselves as we head into autumn.”
