LONDON, April 25 Reuters British retailers suffered their worst April for sales since 2020, when the country was in its first COVID19 lockdown, although the timing of the Easter holidays could be to blame, a survey showed on Thursday.

The Confederation of British Industry39;s CBI monthly retail sales gauge, which measures volumes versus a year ago, fell to 44 from 2 in March.

Orders placed with suppliers also dried up.

Aprils sharp fall in retail sales was likely related to the earlier timing of Easter this year, so we should take it with a pinch of salt, Alpesh Paleja, CBI lead economist, said.

That being said, conditions do remain challenging on the ground. Aprils fall in sales was faster than expected and retailers arent overly hopeful about the month ahead.

Reporting by Andy Bruce Editing by William Schomberg

Source Reuters