Retail sales rose by a better-than-expected 2.9% in May as increased footfall, better weather and deals saw shoppers return to high streets, according to officials.

It comes following a poor performance during the previous month as days of heavy rain dampened demand in much of the country.

Non-food shops reported strong monthly growth in May, with a rebound in clothes and furniture sales in particular, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reported on Friday.

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Footwear, sports equipment, games and toys outlets also experienced an improvement in their quantity of sales.

Economists polled by news agency Reuters had been expecting a rise of around 1.5%.

Meanwhile, the ONS also revised its retail sales figures for April.

It previously estimated that they fell by a worse-than-expected 2.3%, but now says the drop was 1.8%.

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