British consumers unexpectedly boost their shopping in February

Sales volumes increased by a monthly driven by nonTood sales, although supermarkets saw a drop after a surge in business in January

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British retail sales unexpectedly rose in February, figures from the Office for National Statistics showed, defying most forecasts from analysts who had predicted a fall against a backdrop of weak overall growth in the economy.

Sales volumes increased by a monthly 1.0 per cent, driven by non-food sales, although supermarkets saw a drop after a surge in business in January, the ONS said.

A Reuters poll of economists had pointed to a monthly fall of 0.4 per cent in sales volumes. The ONS revised January's month-on-month increase to 1.4 per cent from an initial 1.7 per cent.

While retail sales are volatile, the readings are likely to cheer finance minister Rachel Reeves, whose ambitions to kick-start the economy have been dogged by weak growth data since taking office last July.

"It was a positive month for household goods stores with their largest rise since April 2021, driven by hardware store sales," ONS senior statistician Hannah Finselbach said, adding clothing sales also picked up due to widespread discounting.

Separate ONS data showed British households saved more money as a proportion of their income at the end of 2024 than at any point in nearly 15 years, apart from during the COVID pandemic.

The household savings ratio rose to 12.0 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2024, up from 10.3 per cent in the third quarter.