UK retail sales volumes fell 0.5% in July 2026

UK retail sales volumes fell by 0.5% in July 2026, reversing the previous month's growth as early promotional activity and extreme heat shifted consumer spending patterns. The decline, reported by the Office for National Statistics on August 21, followed a revised 0.7% increase in June and was slightly larger than the 0.4% drop economists had forecast.

The monthly contraction was driven by significant weakness in non-food sectors. Clothing and footwear retailers experienced a 2.7% drop in sales volumes, the steepest monthly fall since May 2025. Household goods stores also saw a 1.9% decline. Online retailers, categorized as non-store retailers, reported a 3.6% slump, pushing the proportion of total retail sales made online down to 28.3% from 29.2% in June.

Industry analysts attributed the downturn to a timing shift in discounting. Many retailers brought their summer sales forward into June, boosting that month's performance at the expense of July. "The earlier timing of discounting and promotions meant that some large online and fashion retailers in particular pulled forward sales into June that would previously have been in July," said Jacqueline Windsor, head of retail at PwC...