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mpc: 15 Some weakness in consumption seemed to have persisted in 2005 Q1, judging by the indicators currently available, although little was known yet about spending on consumer services. Retail sales had increased slightly in February, but there had been some downward revisions to estimates for earlier months. The balances reported in the CBI Distributive Trades Survey had fallen in March. The volume of sales balance had been at its weakest since January 1999. The Bank's regional Agents had reported that retail contacts had been disappointed by sales volumes in the Easter period. The evidence pointed to somewhat weaker Q1 retail sales than expected at the time of the February Inflation Report. Private car registrations in the three months to March, an important month for car dealers because of the registration plate change, had been over 14% lower than a year earlier.