U.K. retail sales grew more than expected in October on strong recovery in non-food store sales, data showed Thursday.
Retail sales volume including auto fuel advanced 0.8 percent in October from September, the Office for National Statistics said Thursday. Economists had forecast sales to recover at a slower pace of 0.3 percent after falling 0.4 percent in September.
Excluding auto fuel, retail sales grew 0.8 percent after easing 0.3 percent in September. Sales were expected to grow by 0.3 percent.
On a yearly basis, retail sales including automotive fuel rose 4.3 percent year-on-year following a 2.3 percent rise in September. The annual growth exceeded a 3.8 percent rise forecast by economists.
Likewise, growth in sales excluding auto fuel accelerated to 4.6 percent from 2.8 percent. It was also faster than the expected increase of 4.2 percent.
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