Black Friday promotions drive unexpected retail boost in November
Retail sales enjoyed stronger-than-expected growth in November as shoppers cashed in on Black Friday promotions.
Sales over the month increased by 1.4 per cent compared to the same period last year, far higher than the 0.3 per cent forecast in a Reuters poll of economists.
But over the three months to November sales rose by only 0.4 per cent on the previous quarter, according to figures released today by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
The figures come despite stark warnings from retailers about disappointing November sales.
Earlier this week Asos chief executive Nick Beighton issued a profit warning for the company, describing a “significant deterioration” in the month’s trading.
Sports Direct boss Mike Ashley last week described the month as “the worst for retailers in living memory”.
Retailers were also boosted by strong growth in the sale of household goods, which leapt by 5.3 per cent.
Lee Lucas, principal of the Fashion Retail Academy, said: “A combination of strong Black Friday sales and a sudden decline in the weather has delivered an early Christmas present for the retail sector.
“After a subdued couple of months, this uplift in sales for November will give a nice and timely boost to the high street.”
But high street shops remain on the back foot as sales shift to online retailers. Online sales made up more than 20 per cent of all retailing in November for the first time, the ONS said.
The latest figures come as retailer Sir John Timpson called for a community-focused approach to help revive the British high street in a new report published today.
Timpson, whose family owns the Timpson shoe repair and key-cutting chain, said: “I have learnt, from my own business, that the best way to get things done is to give people on the front line the freedom to get on with the job in the way they know best.”
Moreover, the ONS said Black Friday deals have shifted consumer spending to sales occurring earlier in the year.
Samuel Tombs, chief economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, warned the longer-term picture remains weak as retailers adapt to new seasonal shopping habits and contend with uncertainty around Brexit.
“Most of the pick-up in total sales will be revised away in time, when the seasonal adjustment process updates for the new pattern on spending generated by Black Friday,” he said.