London retail sales outperform UK in April

Shoppers in London's Oxford Street last month

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London retail sales rose 2.7% on a like for like basis in April against a 1.5% like for like fall across the country. 

The London Retail Consortium (LRC) said that footfall improved slightly but that clothing and footwear sales remained very difficult, despite further discounting.

Sales in central London were up 4.7% on a like for like basis for the period February to April.

The LRC added that European holidays and the strength of the euro has driven Western European shoppers to London but that US and Japanese visitors were still discouraged because of the weak dollar and yen.

Stephen Robertson, director general of the British Retail Consortium, said: "London retailers continued to weather the tough economic climate better than the rest of the UK as a whole, with upmarket fashion accessories, fragrances and skincare doing well. Despite colder and wetter weather, shopper numbers were up slightly. Retailers in the capital will work hard to continue delivering value, especially as household incomes get squeezed."