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UK retail sales were up by 1.8% like-for-like in May in comparison to last year, as retailers promoted "the right product at the right price" to make a difference, according to the British Retail Consortium.
Overall sales were up by a total of 3.4%, 0.9% higher than the average for the previous three months, where sales saw a 2.3% rise—making May a positive month for retailers. The sales growth equalled that of May 2012, which also saw a 3.4% rise on the year before.
Online sales were up by 11%, but this growth was lower than that of May 2012 when online sales were up by 12.4%.
Helen Dickinson, general director of the BRC, said: "The signs are that retailers read conditions well in May and adapted their offer accordingly. Customers are still price-conscious but responding well to good deals, especially for big-ticket items. But volatile economic conditions mean that this will remain a delicate balancing act for some time to come."
David McCorquodale, head of retail for KPMG, added that online sales "saved the bacon" of a lot of retailers last month. He said: "Promoting the right product at the right price made the difference in May. To some extent retailers had their bacon saved by online sales, underlining the growing importance of the digital channel.
"Online sales growth helped to counter variable performances on the high street as many chose to take advantage of the same promotional offers from their sofas."