UK Retail Sales

U.K. retail sales crushed expectations on Thursday, May 24 and Pound Sterling has responded by going higher.

Retail sales recovered in May compared to April but the longer-term trend remains down.

The final in the trio of significant data releases that have the potential to move the British Pound is due for release on Thursday, April 19.

Pound Sterling ticked higher against rivals on Tuesday, April 10 with better-than-forecast retail sales data catching market attention; data has confirmed the UK economy might be doing better than many had previously thought.

The Pound fell after the release of disappointing Retail Sales data from the Confederation of British Industry on Wednesday.

Friday’s retail sales data shows UK consumer spending remained tepid at the start of the year, but there is hope on the horizon, according to Capital Economics.

Pound Sterling is still the best performing G10 currency this week after shrugging off some dire news from the UK retail sector.

"Today’s retail sales figures indicate that consumers are showing an impressive resilience in the face of the ongoing real pay squeeze" - Ruth Gregory, Capital Economics.

The UK has had some good news on the data front this week - unemployment is falling and wages are rising. Inflation might still be elevated, but there are signs it is peaking.

UK consumer spending grew 3.5% in July, but confidence regarding the future slumped to an all-time low according to new data from Barclaycard.

A big data release is likely to drive Pound Sterling on Thursday, July 20.

Sterling-Dollar has broken above the psychological barrier of 1.30 for the first time since 30 September after this morning's UK Retail Sales release surprised to the upside.

One of the thorns in the side of the UK economic growth story, and hence confidence towards the Pound, has been the notable slowdown in UK retail sales growth since December 2017.

Markets reacted favourably to the latest release of UK retail sales data with the Pound rising strongly against all its major competitors.

Pound Sterling retains a negative bias against the Dollar and the Euro with another leg lower in the currency complex being sparked on the back of the release of data which showed a further slowdown in high-street retail sales as shoppers cut spending, especially on non-essentials.

"Retail was the beating heart of the UK economy in 2016, so with consumer spending expected to slide in the coming months we could see the Pound push lower against both the Euro and the Dollar."

Retail sales for November easily beat analyst expectations as the UK consumer appears determined to give the economy a strong start to the new year.

The evolving Brexit story continues to churn, but in a more favourable direction for GBP of late it would seem.

Pound Sterling is under pressure against the Euro and US Dollar following the release of underwhelming UK retail data.

The August release of UK retail sales data was notable in that it helped propel Pound Sterling into a three week rally against the Euro and US Dollar. What can September’s release offer?