Mubasher: Retail sales in the UK decreased in the first quarter of 2018, backed by a sales decline in all sectors except department stores and non-store retailing.

On a quarter-on-quarter basis, retail sales fell by 0.5% in the three months ended 31 March, data released by the Office for National Statistics showed on Thursday.

In March, retail sales growth was down by 1.2% after petrol sales plummeted 7.4% during the month compared to February.

The report attributed the sharp drop in petrol sales to “adverse weather” which negatively affected travel in the UK.

On the other hand, department stores achieved a 0.8% growth last month, the report showed, indicating that online Easter offers had supported online sales “more than usual during the adverse weather.”

Meanwhile, retail sales of supermarket stores decreased last month, with a marginal increase for specialist food stores.

Online sales represented a seasonally-adjusted 17.4% of overall retail sales growth in March up from 15.9% in the same period last year.

By 11:02 am GMT, the GBP/USD pair slipped 0.04% to $1.4197.