Euros and summer discounts push July retail sales higher

High-street retailers said sales of football shirts, electronics such as TVs, and alcoholic drinks were all stronger

Total retail sales volumes rose by 0.5 per cent in July, slightly below predictions (PA)

British retailers saw sales tick slightly higher last month after a boost from the Euro 2024 football tournament and summer discounting, according to official figures.

High-street retailers said sales of football shirts, electronics such as TVs, and alcoholic drinks were all stronger during England’s journey to the Euros final.

Total retail sales volumes, which measure the quantity bought, rose by 0.5 per cent in July, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.

It was, however, slightly below predictions, with a consensus of economists forecasting a 0.7 per cent increase for the month.

(PA Graphics) (PA)

It followed a 0.9 per cent slump in volumes in June, which was revised from a previous estimate of a 1.2 per cent decline, as retail firms blamed uncertainty ahead of the general election and poor weather conditions.

The director of economic statistics at the ONS, Liz McKeown, said: “Retail sales grew in July led by increases in department stores and sports-equipment shops, with both the Euros and discounting across many stores boosting sales.

“These increases were offset by a poor month for clothing and furniture shops, and falling fuel sales despite prices at the pump falling.”

The data showed that non-food stores saw a 1.4 per cent rise, driven by a strong performance from department stores, where sales grew by 4 per cent for the month as summer sales helped to stoke demand.

However, clothing and footwear shops saw a 0.6 per cent dip, while homeware retailers also saw volumes fall 0.6 per cent.

Food stores, meanwhile, saw sales remain flat for the month.

Kris Hamer, director of insight at the British Retail Consortium, said: “Following the gloomy start to summer spending, retailers welcomed the warmer July weather which gave sales growth a boost, particularly in areas such as cosmetics, clothing, footwear and books as consumers prepared for their summer holidays.

“Computing also sold well as people upgraded their home office tech purchases. Meanwhile, homeware and furniture performed badly, as people concentrated their spending on summer experiences.”

Tom Youldon, partner at McKinsey & Company, said: “With sales volumes increasing across most categories, many retailers will be cautiously optimistic.

“Fragile consumer confidence may be lifted as inflation continues to hover close to the 2 per cent mark and the first cut to interest rates since 2020 starts to feed through to household budgets.”