2019.09.2506:15:00UTC+00UK Retailers See Sales To Fall At Slower Pace: CBI

British retailers expect sales to fall at a slower pace in October and orders to remain broadly flat, according to Distributive Trades survey from the Confederation of British Industry, released Wednesday.

About 16 percent of retailers reported a decline in sales volume in September but much smaller than the net 49 percent reported in August. This was the fifth consecutive decrease.

Likewise, a net 9 percent said orders contracted in September versus -57 percent in August.

Only 5 percent of retailers forecast retail sales volume to fall and a net 3 percent expect orders to increase in the year to October.

Rain Newton-Smith, CBI chief economist, said, "Five successive months of falling volumes tells its own story about the tough conditions retailers are having to operate in."

"Add to this the pressures of Sterling depreciation and the need to plan for potential tariffs and supply issues in the event of a no-deal Brexit and you get a gloomy picture for the sector."