According to updated data released on Friday by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), there was no increase in the industry last month.
But it seems that the weather also played a significant role, since customers avoided physical businesses in favor of online shopping.
With the south of England receiving more than double the average amount of rainfall, February was one of the wettest since statistics have been kept.
According to Heather Bovill, the ONS’s deputy director for surveys and economic indicators, “several retailers informed us that a very wet February decreased in-store sales.
“But, with people staying indoors, we saw a boost of 2.1% in the amount spent online.”
The February number exceeded the -0.3% increase that Reuters polled economists to forecast.
