The High Street suffered a meltdown last month when retail sales volumes fell by 2.3 per cent.
The decline was attributed to heavy rain and storms. Experts had predicted a drop of 0.4 percent.
Furniture, clothing, sports equipment, games and toys performed poorly, the Office for National Statistics said.
Sales at fashion and footwear stores fell 5.1 percent monthly, due to falling demand for spring and summer collections. In April there were only 79 percent of the average hours of sunshine.
The figures contradict the more optimistic sentiment seen in other economic indicators: a survey by data firm GfK yesterday showed that consumer confidence is at its highest level since the end of 2021.
Landslide: The decrease was attributed to heavy rains and storms, since in April there were only 79 percent of the average hours of sunshine.
Phil Monkhouse, UK country manager at global financial services firm Ebury, warned that even if the sun shines, some shoppers will continue to spend amid uncertainty around the election and interest rates.
Charlie Huggins, of investment broker Wealth Club, said: ‘Prices for most goods and services are still much higher than they were a couple of years ago. “This continues to instill a sense of caution.”