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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Business
Jonathan Prynn

High street hit as retail sales slump in month after "awful April" bill hikes

Inflation Office for National Statistics
Supermarkets were particularly badly hit by a “dismal” slowdown in retail spending in May (Yui Mok/PA) - (PA Wire)

Retail sales fell sharply in May in the month after consumers were hit by a raft of “Awful April” higher bills that bit deeply into household budgets.

Latest figures from the Office for National Statistics show the volume of sales fell 2.7% in May, the biggest monthly decline since December 2023.

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