Economy

Aug- 2024 -

1 August

BoE cuts interest rates for first time in 4 years

The Bank of England (BoE) has cut interest rates for the first time in four years, with the rate falling to 5%. The bank voted by a majority of 5–4 to reduce the rate by 0.25 percentage points to 5%, marking the first fall in inflation since March 2020, where…

Jul- 2024 -

24 July

Global pet industry to grow to $500bn in revenue by 2030, BI finds

The global pet industry will expand by more than 45% over the next six years, surpassing $500bn (£386.8bn) by 2030, according to a new report from Bloomberg Intelligence (BI). The surge will be driven by increasing pet ownership, particularly in emerging markets like China, robust sales in pet food, strong…

5 July

Taylor Swift and Euros boost footfall amid damp June

Taylor Swift’s UK tour and the Euros helped strengthen footfall during a very wet June as total UK footfall decreased by 2.3% in June (YoY), up from -3.6% in May, according to the latest figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC). On a segment basis, high street footfall decreased by…

Jun- 2024 -

21 June

UK retail sales rose 2.9% in May

UK retail sales volumes rose by 2.9% in May 2024, following a fall of 1.8% in April 2024, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Sales volumes rose across most sectors, with clothing retailers and furniture stores rebounding following poor weather in April. More broadly, sales volumes rose by…

20 June

BoE holds interest rates for 7th consecutive month

Interest rates have remained unchanged at 5.25% for the seventh consecutive month, the Bank of England has announced. The bank’s MPC voted by a majority of 7–2 to maintain the rate, despite inflation hitting its target and falling to 2% in May. UK inflation hit its target for the first…

10 June

Labour vows to overhaul business rates system

The Labour party has vowed to overhaul the current business rates system should it be victorious in the general election. The party stated that it would replace the current system with a new system that will “level the playing field between the high street and online giants”. Shadow chancellor Rachel…

4 June

UK sales slightly increase by 0.7% in May

UK total retail sales increased by 0.7% year on year in May, against a growth of 3.9% in May 2023. This was above the 3-month average growth of 0.3% and below the 12-month average growth of 2.0%. Food sales increased 3.6% year on year over the three months to May,…

May- 2024 -

28 May

Shop price inflation returns to ‘normal levels’, BRC says

Shop price annual inflation eased from 0.8% in April to 0.6% in May, according to the British Retail Consortium’s (BRC) latest shop price index. This has been confirmed to be below the three-month average rate of 0.9%, with the annual shop price growth being at its lowest since November 2021.…

24 May

Retail sales slump 2.3% in April amid wet weather

Retail sales fell by 2.3% in volume over April, following a fall of 0.2% in March, as the retail sector was hampered by ongoing wet weather over the period. According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), sales volumes were down across most sectors, with non-food stores particularly “doing badly”…

Mar- 2024 -

15 March

High street faces ‘unprecedented challenge’ says BIRA

The British Independent Retailers Association (BIRA) has said that the UK High Street is facing “unprecedented challenges” following the release of new data on retail occupancy. High-profile retail restructuring and administrations have resulted in a net of 14 store closures a day during 2023, according to research from LDC and…