Business & Economy
Retail sales decline slows sharply in October’s CBI survey
The CBI’s retail sales balance improved to minus 10 in October from minus 55 in September. Sales were still lower than a year earlier, but the decline was the slowest in 18 months. Retailers remained cautious about November’s trading conditions.
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From 27 October 2026 — UK Daily Brief
27 OCT 2026 · 14/25
British retailers reported a much smaller annual fall in sales during October, according to the CBI’s latest Distributive Trades Survey.
The weighted sales balance improved to minus 10 from minus 55 in September, marking the slowest decline since April 2025. A negative balance still means that more respondents reported falling sales than rising sales.
The figures are survey balances, not a measurement showing that the volume of goods sold fell by 10%. They should not be read as a substitute for official retail sales statistics.
Retailers judged October’s trading broadly normal for the time of year, the first such assessment since May 2024. The deterioration in orders also eased from September’s exceptionally weak reading.
Expectations remained subdued. Respondents anticipated another annual decline in November and sales below the normal level for that month.
The survey therefore points to an easing of pressure on shops, while stopping short of showing a return to sustained growth.