Britain has seen the biggest rise in retail spending since before the recession as rising confidence prises open shoppers’ wallets, official figures revealed today.
A stronger than expected 0.6% increase in sales volumes during September meant growth of 1.5% over the July-September quarter as a whole, the best since March 2008.
The spending spree — helped by the July heatwave — is certain to fuel stronger growth for the wider economy over the quarter although economists warned about the impact of rising gas and electricity prices. British Gas, the UK’s biggest energy firm, hit millions of customers with an average 9.2% hike in bills from November.
ING Bank’s James Knightley said with rising employment and house prices “it is likely consumer confidence will continue to strengthen. The main concern in the near-term is higher utility bills.”
The biggest contributor to September’s rise was household goods stores, with sales up 3% over the month helped by an improving housing market.
