UK retail sales logged only a partial recovery in February as the third lockdown continued to weigh on non-essential goods sales, data from the Office for National Statistics showed on Friday.
Retail sales volume, including auto fuel, posted a monthly growth of 2.1 percent, in contrast to January's 8.2 percent decrease. The pace of growth matched economists' expectations.
Excluding auto fuel, retail sales gained 2.4 percent on month, in contrast to the 8.7 percent decrease seen in January and faster than the forecast of +1.9 percent. Non-food stores provided the largest positive contribution to the monthly growth in February aided by increases in department stores and household goods stores sales.
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