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Retail footfall in Wales has recorded its second weakest performance of the year so far, according to latest figures. Data from the Welsh Retail Consortium (WRC) showed footfall fall for the second consecutive month, dropping by 1% in June year-on-year.

However, this was a smaller decline when compared to May and better than the ������Ƶ average decrease of 1.9% year-on-year. Wales also ranked third out of all the nations and regions in the ������Ƶ - behind London which saw a marginal growth of 0.6% and Scotland which recorded a decline of 0.9%.

In terms of cities, Cardiff’s footfall levels remained unchanged in June (YoY) and 7.9 percentage points better than May, which saw it ranked third best for growth in the ������Ƶ behind Edinburgh (+4.7%) and London (+0.6%).

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TOTAL FOOTFALL BY NATION AND REGION

		% GROWTH
GROWTH RANK	NATION AND REGION	Jun-23	May-23
1	London	+0.6%	+0.2%
2	Scotland	- 0.9%	+1.6%
3	Wales	-1.0%	-3.5%
4	South East England	-1.1%	-2.4%
5	England	-1.9%	-2.9%
6	North West England	-2.3%	-4.6%
7	West Midlands	-2.4%	-4.5%
8	South West England	-2.7%	-1.5%
9	Northern Ireland	-3.7%	-2.1%
10	East of England	-4.0%	-5.2%
11	Yorkshire and the Humber	-4.2%	-7.5%
12	East Midlands	-4.7%	-5.3%
13	North East England	-5.6%	-8.3%

TOTAL FOOTFALL BY CITY

		% GROWTH
GROWTH RANK	CITY	Jun-23	May-23
1	Edinburgh	+4.7%	7.7%
2	London	+0.6%	+0.2%
3	Cardiff	0.0%	-7.9%
4	Leeds	-1.3%	-8.0%
5	Manchester	-1.9%	-6.4%
6	Bristol	-2.6%	-3.5%
7	Liverpool	-3.0%	-4.1%
8	Birmingham	-5.2%	-9.7%
9	Nottingham	-5.9%	-5.2%
10	Belfast	-6.6%	-0.6%
11	Glasgow	-7.2%	-5.2%

Footfall to shopping centres also remained the same in June (YoY), 2.9 percentage points better than May.

Sara Jones, head of the WRC, said: “Whilst shopper footfall in Wales was in decline for a second successive month in June, it was less pronounced than it had been back in May. Indeed, Wales’ performance ranked third overall amongst the thirteen parts of the ������Ƶ that were measured coming in only behind London and Scotland.

“The year-on-year performance of store visits to shopping centres and Cardiff flatlined, albeit that was better than in May.

“Elevated levels of inflation coupled with recent increases in council tax are gnawing away at household disposable incomes. While it’s tricky to second guess what might happen next to consumer spending, rising mortgage rates are likely to weigh further on consumer sentiment. This underlines the need for ������Ƶ and Welsh policymakers to remain wary about adding yet further pressure on to household finances over the year ahead.”

Andy Sumpter, retail consultant EMEA for Sensormatic Solutions, said: “We saw the far-reaching ripple effect of April’s ������Ƶ inflation peak taking hold this month, with the three-month rolling average for ������Ƶ footfall in June dipping down into negative figures (-1.1%) for the first time this year.

“While Welsh shopper traffic made a marginal gain in June compared to May, which will be some positive news for retailers, the ongoing cost-of-living pressure is set to continue to impact shopper behaviour and undermine consumer confidence.

“However, with the tide of food price inflation looking like it is finally – and albeit slowly - starting to recede, retailers will be looking ahead to July, and hoping to benefit from ambient footfall from the school holiday period.”