The survey of 103 firms, of which 42 were retailers, showed that sales volumes for the retail sector stabilised (in line with expectations), following a decline in the previous month. Sales for the time of year remained well below average – to the greatest extent since November 2011 – while orders placed with suppliers rose only slightly.

The outlook for the coming month is better, with retailers expecting sales volumes and orders to rise in the year to February.

Online sales rose at a similar pace to that seen in December 2018, slightly above the long-run average. Online sales growth is expected to slow however in the year to February, to below the long-run average.