Retailers cut orders at record pace, CBI survey finds

Retailers are cutting the orders they place with suppliers at the fastest rate on record, according to the latest survey from the Confederation of British Industry, as the business group urged the Government to ease costs in next month's Budget.

The CBI's distributive trades survey for September found that retail orders fell to a balance of minus 62 per cent in the year to September, from minus 29 per cent in August. That is the weakest reading since the survey began in 1983.

Sales falling

Retail sales volumes also fell more rapidly in the year to September, and online sales declined at the fastest pace in nearly three years. Retailers judged September's sales to be below normal for the time of year, to a greater extent than in August, and expect October's sales to disappoint by a similar amount.

A call for the Budget

The CBI said: "With the Autumn Budget fast approaching, the Government should cut Employer NICs and deliver meaningful business rates reform to lower the cost of doing business and enable retailers and other distribution firms to invest, hire and grow."

Other business leaders have made similar points. Nick Stowe, chief executive of the fashion retailer Monsoon and Accessorize, has said rising operating costs have forced it to scale back plans for new shops, and warned against further increases in business rates.

A mixed picture

The picture was brighter for manufacturers. The CBI's separate industrial trends survey, published a few days earlier, found that factory order books had strengthened and that the decline in output was easing.

Why it matters for Birmingham

Retail and wholesale are major employers in Birmingham, from the Bullring and city centre shops to warehouses and distribution centres around the city. Falling orders can mean fewer shifts for workers and less business for suppliers, and the industry will be watching the Budget closely.