Retail sales in the UK fell more than expected last October, according to the latest official data, as consumers held off on shopping ahead of the holiday season and after the Labour government announced the budget later this month. The Office for National Statistics reported that the volume of goods sold in stores and on e-commerce platforms decreased by 1.1% monthly in October, following a revised 0.7% increase the previous month. This reading ended five consecutive months of growth in UK retail sales and was significantly worse than economists' forecasts, which had anticipated a 0.2% decline, according to Bloomberg News.
