(ONS) The volume of retail sales in the UK increased by 1.4% in November, higher than the expected gain of 0.8%.
Sales volumes in non-food stores increased by 2.0%, led by clothing store growth of 2.9%. Clothing store sales were for the first time above the pre-pandemic level, with a 3.2% increase from February 2020.
Sales in food stores improved by 0.2% to maintain levels 3.2% above February 2020.
Sales of automobile fuels increased by 3.7%, with the levels now 1.9% below February 2020.
The volume of online retail sales continued to fall, reaching 26.9% in November, its lowest since March 2020.
Overall, UK retail sales volume was now 7.2% above the pre-pandemic level in February 2020.
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