British retail sales jump back to pre-Covid crisis level        

A 70% surge in clothes and footwear sales is welcome on the high-street but is "not a sign that households overall spending is recovering fully"

There has been a 70% surge in clothes and footwear sales in the UK. Picture: Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire

British retail sales jumped back almost to pre-coronavirus lockdown levels in June when non-essential stores in England reopened, giving a boost to beleaguered clothing stores.

Sales volumes in June leapt by almost 14% from May, above all forecasts in a Reuters poll of economists.