- UK retail sales rebounded 3.4% month-on-month in January, well above expectations.
- Core retail sales rose 3.2% month-on-month in January.
- GBP/USD flirts with 1.2600 after upbeat UK data.
UK retail sales rebounded 3.4% month-on-month in January vs. 1.5% expected and -3.3% reported in December, the latest data published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed on Friday.
Core retail sales, which exclude auto fuel sales, rose 3.2% month-on-monthcompared to the 1.7% expected and -3.5% in December.
On a year-on-year basis, UK retail sales rose 0.7% in January, compared to -1.4% expected and -2.4% in December, while underlying retail sales also rose 0.7% for the month, up from -1.6% forecast and -2.1% previously.
Main points (ONS)
This was the largest monthly increase since April 2021 and returned volumes to November 2023 levels.
Sales volumes in all subsectors except clothing stores increased during the monthwith food stores, such as supermarkets, being the ones that contributed the most to the increase.
More broadly, sales volumes fell 0.2% in the three months to January compared to the previous three months, however this was the smallest drop since August 2023.
Market reaction to UK retail sales report
The GBP/USD pair keeps its trading range intact near 1.2600 despite encouraging UK retail sales data. The pair is trading flat on the day.
Source: Fx Street
I am Joshua Winder, a senior-level journalist and editor at World Stock Market. I specialize in covering news related to the stock market and economic trends. With more than 8 years of experience in this field, I have become an expert in financial reporting.
