Hit by wet, chilly weather (Il Sole 24 Ore Radiocor) - London, 07 May - In April, retail sales in the UK fell 4% year on year, weighed down by continued wet and chilly weather, according to the latest Retail Sales Monitor released by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and consultancy KPMG.

In March, the monitor had shows a 3.5% annual rise in sales and a 1.1% rise in February.

Health, beauty, and personal care sales remained resilient categories and there was a surprised return to positive sales growth for computing for the first time in over two years, both instore and online, according to the survey.

The food category was buoyed by Easter, but looking at the three month figures food and drink shows positive sales growth, albeit dampened volumes.

Online and high street sales across categories that can be delayed, including clothing and footwear, remain subdued.

AAA-Sch

(RADIOCOR) 07-05-24 11:43:28 (0381) 5 NNNN