Retail sales fall short in key festive period

UK retail sales missed expectations in the key Christmas shopping month of November, official figures show.
Retail sales nudged up 0.2%, an improvement on the 0.7% decline seen in October, according to data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). But it was below analysts’ expectations of a 0.5% jump.
The ONS said growth in supermarkets and other non-food stores was partly offset by a fall in clothing retailers.
Food sales increased for the first time in three months, boosted by 0.