SCOTTISH retail sales dropped for the fifth month in a row, with experts suggesting the Brexit impasse was keeping wallets “firmly closed”.
Scottish sales for September decreased by 2.3% on a like-for-like basis compared to the same month last year, according to the monthly SRC-KPMG monitor published today.
It is the fifth successive month of shrinking sales, according to the Scottish Retail Consortium (SRC).
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Total non-food sales dropped by 5.4% compared to September last year when they fell by 1.4%.
SRC’s head of policy Ewan MacDonald-Russell said that an “urgent Brexit resolution” was needed by Christmas.
He added: “It’s difficult not to conclude the impasse over the UK’s exit from the EU is a reason nervous shoppers are keeping their wallets and purses firmly closed.
KPMG’s UK head of retail Paul Martin warned that the next few months could be “make-or-break” for many of Scotland’s most high-profile brands.
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