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Highlights:
- Retailers failed to cash in on Black Friday and Christmas shopping last month, data from the ONS showed.
- Online retail stores saw a 2.8% fall in sales volumes during the month as shoppers flocked to high-street stores.
As the cost-of-living crisis squeezes household budgets, the hopes for retailers having a good holiday season this year continue to be down. Shop owners have already been warning of lower sales during this year's holiday season, which generally is the busiest in the whole year, for a few months.
According to official data, retailers failed to cash in on Black Friday and Christmas shopping last month. The latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) indicate that the retail sales volumes declined by 0.4% in November. The figures indicate a weaker-than-expected month, especially after October saw a 0.9% growth. There were expectations that the sales would rise by 0.3%.
Image source: © Shutter999 | Megapixl.com
Online retail sales significantly declined despite Black Friday, which usually boosts the sector. The digital stores saw a 2.8% fall in sales volumes during the month as shoppers flocked to high-street stores. However, compared to February 2020, before the onset of COVID-19, they were still nearly 20% higher.
Stores that defied the trend were food stores, reporting a 0.9% rise in sales volumes. This indicates that people have started stocking for Christmas.
ONS further added that supermarkets recently raised concerns about falling sales volumes due to rising costs.
Let us explore some retail stocks in the wake of the latest sales data from the ONS.
Tesco plc (LON: TSCO)
The multinational retailer of groceries and general merchandise is a constituent of the FTSE 100 index. Its shares traded at GBX 223.10, down 0.18% as of 10:48 am GMT on Friday. With a market cap of £16,491.25 million, Tesco Plc's EPS stands at 0.19 as of 16 December 2022. The TSCO's stock price has declined by 21.00% in the past year.
J Sainsbury plc (LON: SBRY)
J Sainsbury owns the second largest chain of supermarkets across the country. SBRY shares traded 0.18% higher at GBX 218.70 as of 10:51 am GMT on Friday. The company's one-year return stood at -19.13% at the time of writing. The FTSE 100-listed company holds a market cap of £5,119.27 million, and its EPS stood at 0.30 as of 16 December 2022.
Marks and Spencer Group plc (LON: MKS)
The UK-based retailer has operations across the world. MKS shares were down 0.46% on Friday at 10:53 am GMT and traded at GBX 119.85. The stock's 12-month return stood at -46.59% at the time of writing. As of 16 December 2022, the market capitalisation of the FTSE 250 firm stood at £2,365.66 million, and the EPS stood at 0.16
Note: The above content constitutes a very preliminary observation or view based on market trends and is of limited scope without any in-depth fundamental valuation or technical analysis. Any interest in stocks or sectors should be thoroughly evaluated taking into consideration the associated risks.
