Retail sales growth slowed significantly last month as consumer confidence “continued to sink”, according to new research. The latest BRC-KPMG retail sales monitor revealed that total sales increased by 3.1% in March, slipping back from a 6.7% rise in February.
Experts added that the growth in total sales in March was buoyed by price rises across the sector. It came as separate research from Barclaycard showed that rising fuel prices and household bills were starting to affect customer spending patterns.
The new data comes as the cost of living crisis and rising household inflation provides a new challenge for the retail sector after two years blighted by the pandemic. The BRC-KPMG data showed that like-for-like retail sales were down 0.4% against the same month last year.
