British retail sales grew strongly in the year to April and are expected to increase at an even faster pace next month, said Confederation of British Industry (CBI) Thursday in a survey report. Forty-two percent of respondents reported that sales volumes were up on a year ago, while 12 percent said they were down, giving a balance of plus 30 percent (+30%), which was significantly higher than plus 13 percent in March, said CBI according to a survey of 131 companies. Retailers expect another robust growth of sales volumes next month, with 48 percent expect them to rise and merely 5 percent to fall. The balance of plus 43 percent is the highest expected growth since December 2010, which were plus 45 percent, noted CBI. Among the retail sectors, grocers, footwear & leather and hardware & DIY (Do-It-Yourself) recorded particularly strong annual sales growth, all seeing a pick-up from March, data showed. Internet retail sales continued to perform strongly, with the volume of sales rising at the highest annual rate since November 2012. Eighty-eight percent of motor traders reported sales volumes to be up on last year and 9 percent said they were down. Barry Williams, chair of the CBI Distributive Trades Survey Panel, said in a statement: "This latest survey echoes the current drumbeat of positive economic news. The trick now is for this to become a consistent theme, and deliver much needed support to household spending and economic growth in the months ahead. " Capital Economics, a London-based economic research company, said in a note: "the latest CBI survey provides another encouraging sign that the consumer recovery should maintain a healthy pace over the coming quarters."