§ 7. Mr. Geoffrey Finsbergasked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what was the volume of retail sales seasonally adjusted in the first quarter of 1972 compared with the same period of 1971; and whether he will make a statement.
§ Mr. John DaviesThere was an increase of over 3 per cent. after allowing for the reduced level of mail order business in the first quarter of 1971 due to the postal strike. The figures for April and May show a further growth in the volume of sales.
§ Mr. FinsbergI am grateful to my right hon. Friend for that answer. Does he feel that this indicates that the process of destocking has come to an end and that, once the process of restocking is in the pipeline, this will help industry in general?
§ Mr. DaviesYes, I believe that to be the case and I am grateful to my hon. Friend for raising the matter. It seems to me that we are entering a period where consumer demand is growing strongly and where there is a recognisedneed to restock to make good stocks which have been seriously drawn down. This should give a further impetus to the level of production.