Visits to Black Friday sales have fallen this year as shoppers weigh up the prospect of higher taxes after Rachel Reeves’s Budget.

High streets and shopping centres saw a 3pc decrease in foot traffic on Friday compared to a year earlier, according to data from MRI Software, in partnership with Retail Economics.

“It is not surprising: people’s household budgets are under pressure and discretionary spending is an area that is bound to be hit,” said Richard Hyman, a retail analyst.

“The fact that the Budget was so close to Black Friday means that consumers would have been bombarded by the various ideas that were floated ahead of the Budget. Whether that was income tax or mansion tax – people did not expect that they would have more money to spend after the Budget.”

Black Friday is a US import and marks the beginning of post-Thanksgiving sales. It’s meant to kickstart the festive shopping season. It has become important for British retailers in recent years as shoppers have come to expect it.

Traditionally held in October, this year the Budget fell just two days before Black Friday. Analysts said the timing was likely to have deterred people from shopping.

Mr Hyman said: “The Budget’s proximity to Black Friday has not helped. It is a bit of a reality check and has helped to reinforce the idea that we are not doing very well economically. Consumers are part of that and so it does not make sense to go out and spend a lot of money in the Black Friday sales.”

Retailers outside London suffered the biggest declines in visits to the shops, with coastal and market towns like Cromer in Norfolk and Shrewsbury in Shropshire faring the worst.

Visits to high streets and shopping centres in London were largely unchanged from last year.

The West Midlands saw a decrease of over 11pc while regions in the North including Yorkshire experienced a 10pc slump.

“The cost of living squeeze appears to be weighing on overall activity,” said Jenni Matthews, at MRI Software.

“Retail footfall remains 3.3pc lower compared to Black Friday last year with high streets and shopping centres leading this decline whereas retail parks noticed a marginal 0.1pc increase in visits.”

BRC Consumer Sentiment Monitor data from earlier in November indicated subdued appetite for Black Friday sales.

Only 42pc of respondents said they expect to spend more than they budgeted, down from 50pc in 2024. Overall, there was a decrease in appetite for the sales across the board with people saying they were less likely to take advantage of the discounts.

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