Sales fall again in shops

Retail sales have registered another decline this month, suggesting that ’green shoots’ of economic recovery remain sparse.

The Confederation of British Industry (CBI), a business group, said in its new Distributive Trades Survey that 48 per cent of retailers have experienced falling sales in May.

Meanwhile, just 31 per cent said that sales had risen.

While the latest figures show that the recent downwards trend in the retail sector was continuing, the ’balance’ of sentiment (-17 per cent) was the smallest recorded since last June, discounting April’s +3 per cent balance.

This could mean that the credit crunch-induced decline could be close to bottoming out.

However, overall sentiment on Britain’s economic prospects remains downbeat, with the Bank of England saying earlier this month that it did not expect recovery to begin until 2010.

Commenting on the report, Ian McCafferty, the CBI’s chief economic adviser, said: ’Businesses of all types are looking to reduce stock levels during the recession, to adjust to lower demand and to improve cashflow.

’Retailers’ efforts appear to be having an impact, with stock levels lower relative to expected demand, which should help improve conditions along the supply chain.’ADNFCR-2318-ID-19193043-ADNFCR