Credit crunch hits high street as sales fall

Credit crunch hits high street as sales fall

There were signs that the credit crunch has hit the high street as figures showed yesterday that retail sales fell in October for the first time in nine months. The high street has so far escaped almost unscathed from the turmoil that has caused people’s loans, mortgages and credit cards to cost more. But figures from the Office for National Statistics showed that shops were starting to feel the pain for the first time, with sales volumes falling 0.1 per cent, despite a fourth successive month of discounting from retailers. Analysts had been predicting a modest rise as shoppers - encouraged by the cold snap - start to look for winter coats, boots and early Christmas presents.
[The Daily Telegraph page 19 - 16.11.07. Also reported in Daily Mail page 97, The Times page 58, The Guardian page 27, The Independent page 51 and Financial Times page 5.]