British shop price inflation cooled in early April for the first time in six months as retailers ramped up discounts at the start of the month, an industry survey showed.

The British Retail Consortium (BRC) and market research group Nielsen said shop prices were 0.4 percent higher than a year ago in April, compared with 0.9 percent in March.

"There were more than double the number of product lines on discount this month compared to the previous, as retailers hope to recover ground after March's disappointing sales figures," BRC chief executive Helen Dickinson said.

Clothing and footwear saw the most widespread discounts, followed by home improvement goods and fresh food.