UK retail sales slow as uncertainty hits non-essential spend
By Benjamin Chiou
Date: Tuesday 10 Jun 2025
(Sharecast News) - Weak discretionary spending held back UK retail sales in May, with year-on-year growth slowing dramatically to the lowest level so far this year.
Total retail sales rose by just 1% last month compared with last year, according to the British Retail Consortium's retail sales monitor on Tuesday.
This was the weakest rate of annual growth since November 2024 and followed a 7% year-on-year surge in sales in April, as spending was supported by the timing of Easter, which fell in March of last year.
Food sales were 3.6% up year-on-year in May, while non-food sales fell by 1.1%, with sales of fashion and full-price big-ticket items lower, reflecting weaker consumer confidence.
This was the first year-on-year decline in non-food sales in six months.
"While the sunshine continued, the pace of retail sales growth didn't in May," said Linda Ellett, UK head of consumer, retail and leisure at KPMG, which jointly published the retail sales monitor.
"Early seasonal purchases were likely a factor, as was a dampening of some spending appetite as households reflected upon the recent combination of essential bill rises," Ellett said.
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