British retail sales barely grew in July as cash-strapped consumers cut back on spending, underscoring the risks for the UK's already fragile economic recovery. A weakening labour market and rising inflation are expected to continue to restrain consumer spending and, together with signs that key British export markets are slowing, increase the risk that the UK economy will fail to pick up after nine months of near stagnation.
Sales volumes, including automotive fuel sales, grew by just 0.2 percent last month, and were unchanged from a year ago, data from the Office for National Statistics showed on Thursday. Analysts had forecast a rise of 0.3 percent both on the month and from a year earlier.