Sales in food stores fell by 1.1% in June 2024. Credit: Stokkete/Shutterstock.

Retail sales volumes in the UK saw a significant 1.2% drop in June 2024 due to poor weather conditions that discouraged shopping activity.  

The decline follows a 2.9% increase in May 2024. Over the year to June, volumes dropped by 0.2%. Sales volumes were 1.3% below the pre-pandemic levels of February 2020, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). 

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The downturn was observed across most retail sectors, with department stores and clothing retailers particularly affected, reverting to their first-quarter levels of the year.  

In June, sales volumes for non-food stores including department, clothing, household and other non-food retailers, saw a 2.1% fall. This followed a rise of 3.3% in May. 

Retailers have cited factors impacting sales, including uncertainty around the UK General Election held on 4 July, adverse weather conditions and reduced foot traffic.  

When comparing the second quarter of 2024 with the first, non-food store sales volumes decreased by 0.5%. 

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Food stores reported a 1.1% decline in June and a 1.3% drop in the second quarter of the year compared to the first.

Supermarkets were mainly responsible for this downturn, which was driven by both the cold weather and economic conditions. 

Online spending values also fell by 2.7% in June 2024 but still showed a 2.3% increase from June 2023.  

While overall monthly spending declined by 1.3% in June 2024, the proportion of online sales slightly decreased from 27.5% in May to 27.1% in June. 

Quarterly analysis reveals a 0.1% fall in sales volumes in the second quarter of 2024 compared to the first quarter, and a 0.2% decrease when compared with the same quarter of 2023. 

According to the British Retail Consortium report released in June 2023, the UK retail sector witnessed a modest increase in sales in May 2024, recording a 0.7% year-on-year growth.