October retail rose modestly in Britain

LONDON, Nov. 19 (UPI) -- The value of retail sales in Britain rose 0.3 percent in October compared to October 2008, the Office of National Statistics said Thursday.

By volume, sales rose 3.4 percent compared to the same month last year.

Compared to September, sales rose 0.4 percent in both value and volume.

Food stores saw a 3.9 percent increase in the value of their sales in October, while non-food retailers saw a 0.9 percent increase. Among non-food stores, the value of general merchandise sales rose 5.9 percent. Clothing and shoe store sales, by value, rose 4.2 percent and household goods sales rose 2 percent, ONS said.