Biggest drop in petrol purchases in six years hits retail sales in Great Britain

Fuel purchases in April plunged more than 10% month on month, the biggest slide since November 2020. Photograph: Nick Ansell/PA

Motorists cutting back on petrol and fuel purchases at the steepest rate since the Covid pandemic in 2020 drove retail sales in Great Britain to their biggest monthly decline in a year.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the overall volume of retail sales plunged by 1.3% in April compared with the previous month, the biggest contraction since May last year and worse than the -0.6% forecast.