Next, the UK's second-largest clothing retailer, said sales in August and early September were "disappointing," paring growth for the year to date.

The period since the end of July has been "unusually quiet," the Leicester-based company said today in a statement, also reporting first-half profit that beat estimates.

Sales under the Next brand, which ended the first half up 4.5 per cent, are now back to the middle of the company's full-year guidance range of 2 per cent to 4.5 per cent, Next said today.

"We remain cautious about the economic outlook," the company said in the statement. Still, Next said it is maintaining full-year forecasts for growth in sales and profit. Pretax profit for the six months through July rose 10 per cent to #251.3 million pounds, the company reported.

Sales, excluding value-added tax, increased 4.8 per cent to #1.64 billion (€2.04 billion)

Next said in August that it expected pre-tax profit in its fiscal year through January 2013 to be as much as #620 million, an increased forecast.

The retailer has benefited from sales through its Directory unit, which includes online sales, especially as wet summer weather depressed UK. spending.

Marks and Spencer, the nation's largest clothes seller, reported a 6.8 per cent decline in same-store sales of general merchandise, which is mainly apparel, in the quarter ended June 30, the biggest decline in non-food revenue since 2008.

UK stores are suffering as economic confidence drops and government budget cuts restrain spending.

An index of UK retail sales dropped to its lowest level in four months in August, and confidence about the outlook for the next quarter weakened, according to the Confederation of British Industry.

Bloomberg