LONDON (AP) — Official figures show that retail sales in Britain rose by a solid if unspectacular 0.3 percent in July from the month before.

The rate of increase was unchanged from June's rise, which was downwardly revised from 0.6 percent. However, it was slightly ahead of market expectations for a 0.2 percent rise.

The Office for National Statistics said Thursday that strong food sales were largely behind the monthly increase.

Senior statistician Ole Black said trends in growth in different sectors are "proving quite volatile."

Retail sales have been relatively soft this year as consumer prices have risen. However, there are hopes they may soon be buoyed by a pick-up in wages and signs that inflation may have peaked.

This story has been corrected to show that the June increase was downwardly revised to 0.3 percent from the previous 0.6 percent recorded.