UK retail sales tumble, debt soars on pandemic fallout

UK retail sales tumble, debt soars on pandemic fallout

LONDON: Retail sales in Britain tumbled and government borrowing soared in January after the country re-entered lockdown over the coronavirus pandemic, official data showed Friday. Retail sales slumped 8. 2 percent last month compared with December, the sharpest fall since April 2020, the Office for National Statistics said in a statement. "All sectors saw a monthly decline in volume sales ... except for non-store retailers and food stores," the ONS added. Separate ONS figures showed government net borrowing hit £8. 8 billion ($12. 2 billion, 10. 1 billion euros) in January, a record for the month and the first January deficit for a decade. Since April 2020, or soon after the UK's first virus lockdown, public sector net borrowing has ballooned by £270. 6 billion. Overall public sector net debt stands at £2. 1 trillion, or around 98 percent of Britain's total annual economic output. Finance Minister Rishi Sunak on Friday reiterated the need for Britain to return to 'a more sustainable footing,' as he prepares for his annual budget next month. UK debt has rocketed over the past year, largely as the government pays the bulk of wages for millions of private sector workers. Sunak said in a statement