Retail sales are lower than they were 12 months ago - the first time they have fallen over a 12-month period since April 2005, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC) -KPMG Retail Sales Monitor, and are the worst figures for three years by dropping -2.2% on a like-for-like basis.

The drop leaves total sales -0.1% lower than they were in October last year. The BRC said the “seriously poor numbers” reflected plummeting consumer confidence. Food and drink was the only sector to show sales significantly up on a year ago while sales of clothing and footwear remained poor and often discount-driven, despite colder and much wetter weather than last October, while furniture and homewares sales fell further below those of a year ago, the report said.

Discounts and promotions had often failed to tempt consumers, the figures showed.

They also revealed online sales fell in the days after the banking crisis hit, suggesting consumers were anxious about their finances.