UK retail sales bounced back last month in a better-than-expected performance over the key Christmas season, new official figures show.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the total volume of retail sales, which measures the quantity bought, is estimated to have risen by 0.4% in December.
This follows a fall of 0.1% in November.
Most experts had been expecting sales to remain flat in December, according to Pantheon Macroeconomics.
It comes after a boost to online trading, with sales across internet retailers rising by 4.4% – the biggest rise since February last year – thanks to strong demand for gold and silver after a lull in November.
The ONS said the December figure meant sales volumes overall in 2025 rose by 1.3%, which is the biggest increase since 2021.
But the December rise failed to offset falls of 0.8% and 0.1 in October and November respectively, leaving retail sales by volume down by 0.3% in the all-important final quarter of the year.
ONS senior statistician Hannah Finselbach said: “Sales were up in December, with internet retailing doing well.
“Within this, online jewellers had a strong month and told us there was higher demand for gold and silver.
“Across 2025 as a whole, retail sales saw a second consecutive annual rise after the large falls of 2022 and 2023, but volumes still remained below their pre-pandemic level.”
The figures showed a small 0.2% rise in sales for supermarkets month-on-month in December, but confirmed a tough Christmas for non-food stores, which saw a 0.9% drop.
This was the worst performance for non-food stores since May last year.
It comes after figures from the big supermarket and high street players in recent weeks have shown a buoyant festive period for food sales as they competed on price, but much more difficult trading for general merchandise and clothing.
The ONS said clothing and footwear sales dropped 0.7% in December.
Many of the retail giants flagged a hit to trading in October and November due to consumer uncertainty ahead of the November 26 budget.
Jacqueline Windsor, head of retail at PwC UK, said: “The final quarter of the year when retailers traditionally make most of their money was a disappointment.
“It’s now clear that consumers held back in the run-up to Christmas.
“Even as budget uncertainty dissipated, shoppers did not buy as much as retailers hoped, due to the later start to Christmas shopping and factors such as higher grocery price inflation meaning they had to divert their spending from discretionary categories to essentials.”
But GfK’s consumer confidence report out separately on Friday gave hope that spending may continue to recover, with a slight improvement in the reading amid household “resilience”.
Elliott Jordan-Doak, senior UK economist at Pantheon, said further interest rate cuts should help boost shoppers over the year ahead.
“We think consumers’ spending should continue to recover in 2026 as policy uncertainty continues to ease, inflation falls, and the Monetary Policy Committee reduces interest rates in April,” he said.
