Retail sales up (on the year)

In adjusted terms, core retail sales fell in February but remain much higher than they were at the same time last year.

This chart excludes the Motor Trades and a strong upward trend can be seen, for the volume series in particular, from around spring 2013.  Volume in the Motor Trades category is up 15 per cent in the year but fell six per cent in the month.

In annual terms the increase in retail sales volume is close to the level seen during the spike in sales caused by the ‘digital switchover’ in late 2012 and higher than at any other point since the start of 2010.  It can seen that the annual growth in the value series is much more muted.

All in all, good but only weakly so.

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