UK retail sales slumped in January as tighter nationwide coronavirus restrictions hammered department and clothing stores, official data revealed on Friday.
Sales volumes slumped 8.2% compared with December, the biggest fall since April, and far more than the 2.5% forecast by economists.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the figures reflected the impact of the third national lockdown imposed at the start of the month. Sales were down 5.5% year on year.
