10 May 2005
Retail sales fell by 4.7 per cent on a like-for-like basis in April due largely to reduced credit card usage, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC).
The new report also reveals that year-on-year sales have also fallen by about 1.3 per cent.
Economists have attributed this fall in credit card spending to a number of factors contributing to deflated consumer confidence.
"In case anyone still needed convincing, these figures confirm it - trading on the high street is tough," said the head of retail at KPMG, Helen Dickinson.
"The timing of Easter has artificially deflated this month's figures, tipping total sales into a decline of 1.3 per cent but the underlying trend is still downwards."
The director general of BRC Kevin Hawkins added: "April was another very tough month for retailers.
"Some stores enjoyed stronger sales on warmer days, but this was short-lived and sales in most sectors suffered, especially big-ticket items.
"A slowing housing market, pre-election economic uncertainty and the continuing threat of interest rate rises dominated consumer confidence in April," he added.
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