LONDON, June 21 Reuters British retail sales jumped sharply last month after heavy rain kept shoppers away in April, official figures showed on Friday, in a minor boost for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak ahead of the July 4 election.

Sales volumes rose 2.9 in May, up from a revised 1.8 fall in April, the Office for National Statistics said.

Economists polled by Reuters had on average forecast sales volumes would increase by 1.5 in May.

Compared to a year ago, May39;s sales volumes were 1.3 higher, after a revised 2.3 fall in April, but remained 0.5 below their level in February 2020 before the COVID19 pandemic.

The ONS said yearly sales growth might also be distorted by an extra public holiday in May 2023 to mark King Charles39; coronation.

Lisa Hooker, a consumer markets specialist at PwC, said May39;s sales growth was less strong than it looked at first glance, once the extra trading day, a cut in employee payroll taxes and a rise in the minimum wage were taken into account.

We would have expected a larger improvement in sales volumes, she said.

British shoppers have been squeezed by high inflation which only returned to the BoE39;s 2 target last month after exceeding it for nearly three years.

Average wages are now rising faster than inflation and consumer sentiment in June had recovered to its highest since November 2021, according to figures from Britain39;s longestrunning consumer confidence survey earlier on Friday.

The ONS said sales volumes rose across…