Summer Rain Affects High Street Sales

High street sales have suffered another poor month of trading due to the wet weather throughout July

Total retail sales experienced the weakest growth since April, according to the British Retail Consortium.

This is despite some shops opening for longer on Sundays, thanks to relaxed trading laws during the period.

But food and drink sales rose during the final week of July during sunnier weather and the start of the Olympics.

Stephen Robertson, director general of the British Retail Consortium, said, “With only the opening couple of days of the Olympic Games covered by these statistics we'll have to wait a while to assess the overall impact on retail sales. Lets hope Team GB keeps on increasing its medal tally, bringing a feel-good factor that helps consumer confidence.”

Shops in central London have also struggled because of customers avoiding streets, fearing heavily busy roads because of the increased tourism.