According to the report from Office for National Statistics, in August 2020, retail sales volumes increased by 0.8% when compared with July; this is the fourth consecutive month of growth, resulting in an increase of 4.0% when compared with February’s pre-pandemic level. Economists had expected a 0.7% increase in August.

In August, retail sales values increased by 0.7% when compared with July and 2.5% when compared with February. 

In August, there was a mixed picture within the different store types as non-store retailing volumes were 38.9% above February, while clothing stores were still 15.9% below February’s pre-pandemic levels.

Spending for home improvements continued to rise in August as sales volumes within household goods stores increased by 9.9% when compared with February.

Online retail sales fell by 2.5% in August when compared with July, but the strong growth experienced over the pandemic has meant that sales were still 46.8% higher than February’s pre-pandemic levels.