British retail sales drop in June

British retail sales fell unexpectedly in June from the previous month, hit by weaker demand for food, household goods and petrol, official data showed Thursday.

Sales by volume dipped 0.2 percent last month compared with May, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said in a statement.

That confounded market expectations for a 0.4-percent increase, according to analysts polled by Bloomberg.

The ONS added that retail sales grew by 4.0 percent in June compared with one year earlier.

"Overall, it isn't great news, but we feel that the trend for consumer spending remains strong," noted economist James Knightley at ING bank.