The volume of retail sales in the UK fell by 0.9% in December compared to the previous month, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) of the country reports. Over the year, sales increased by 3%. Analysts had expected a monthly decline of 0.8% and annual growth of 3.6%. Trade Economics reports that the decline in sales in December was the highest since 2017. Retail sales fell by 1.3% and increased by 2.6% over the year. Automobile fuel sales grew by 2.6%, food - by 0.2%. Sales of household goods fell by 2.3%. The data on the sales volume for November were also revised: the growth was 1.3% versus 1.4%, as was previously supposed. In the last quarter of the year, sales of goods fell by 0.2% after rising 1.4% in the third quarter. Last year, sales grew by 2.7% and exceeded the figure for 2017 by 2%. The peak value was in 2016, when British citizens voted to leave the European Union. Retail sales in the country generate 6% of revenue in UK GDP.
