(Office for National Statistics) Retail sales in the UK declined by 1.4% between April and May as easing of coronavirus restrictions encouraged more people to dine out.
Average retail sales between April and May were still 7.7% above that of March 2021 and 9.1% higher than February 2020.
Compared to May 2020, retail sales were 24.6% higher.
Food stores contributed to the largest monthly decline in retail sales in May, after recording a 5.7% slip as people returned to restaurants and bars.
Non-food stores record a 2.3% increase in retail sales in May.
Retail sales volume for the three months to May were 8.3% higher compared to the previous three months.
Automobile fuel sales recorded a strong growth of 19.3% while non-food retail sales were also robust at 17.8% increase.
Online sales fell to 28.5% in May, from 29.8% in April, but were still 58.8% higher than February 2020.
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