Household goods stores pick up, driven by hardware and furniture retailers, says ONS report.
According to the Office for National Statistics (INS), the volume of retail sales in July rose by 3.3% compared with the same month in 2008.

Predominantly non-food stores increased 3.4% for the month. Within this sector, non-food, non-specialised stores increased by 5.6% and textile. Clothing and footwear stores increased by 10%.

Household goods stores decreased by 1.3%, with sales driven by hardware stores, however, between June and July, the sector saw a 4.5% increase, driven by furniture and electrical stores. This is the highest rise since August 2006.

Non-store retailing and repair increased by 9% in July.

Total sales volume in the three months to July 2009 increased 1.2% compared with the previous three months. Predominantly non-food stores increased by 1.15%, with all sectors showing growth. The largest increase was non-specialised stores, which grew its sales 1.9% in the three- month period.