British retail growth increases
19/09/2014
British retail growth increased significantly last month, according to official figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
The underlying picture looks to be positive, as August is now in the seventeenth month of consecutive growth, and the 3.9% increase this month is the largest since October 2001.
The main contribution to the rise in retail sales has been furniture stores, with a rise of 23.4% in sales since last month, which is the largest upsurge since records began in 1998. Electrical appliance stores also contributed to the increase, which may be due to consumers purchasing high powered vacuum cleaners before the EU energy saving regulations came into force at the end of August, banning certain types of vacuum cleaners from being sold in the EU.
The country’s economic recovery has been driven mainly by Britain’s consumers. It has also been helped by low interest rates and weak inflation that has encouraged consumers to spend. Prices in stores fell 1.2 % in August, the steepest decline in more than five years. Prices in food stores showed their first annual fall since 2004 as supermarkets waged a price war.
There has now been discussions to increase the record low interest rates Britain has been benefiting from, yet the report from the ONS earlier this week detailing Britain’s low wage growth has been a point of awareness in the debate.
Need financial advice?
If you have any personal finance questions related to this news article, then please contact our financial advisers. You can get in touch by asking a question online, calling us on 0800 092 1245, or by arranging a visit.
Share this..
Related stories
Thug behaviour hits business costs
Yob behaviour cost UK businesses an average of £5,000 in 2006, more than double the costs of the previous year, according to research by Royal and SunAlliance.A quarter of business owners feel that the introduction of 24-hour drinking has increased the problem of hooligan damage. Despite a reduction in the number of businesses affected from one-third in 2005 to one-fifth in 2006 the survey reveal...
Read MoreBritish consumers amongst most active online buyers
A report by the Centre for Retail Research has confirmed that UK shoppers spent far more online than anybody else in Europe in 2009. Indeed UK online shopping accounted for around one third of all online purchases within Europe which equates to a figure of £30 billion. The average spend per shopper in the UK was over £1,100 in 2009 with expectations that this will increase further in 2010. Th...
Read MoreNetwork rail risks the wrath of unions
It has been revealed that Network Rail is seeking an injunction which will block next week's national strike plan by the RMT union. This move comes despite the fact that both parties have been around the negotiating table for some days now and there were hopes of a resolution in the short term. However, it looks as though the Network Rail move to block the strike through the courts could backfire...
Read MoreIrish Central bank demands further budget cuts
Ireland Central Bank has today reduced growth forecasts for the Irish economy in 2010 from 0.8% in July to 0.2%. The authorities are also cutting their forecasts for next year from 2.8% to 2.4% which if correct is not necessarily the nightmare scenario which some people are predicting for the Irish economy. So how can the Irish Central Bank expect growth of 2.4% while many are predicting a capitul...
Read MoreCould the British Airways strike bring down Gordon Brown?
Gordon Brown and the UK government are in a very difficult situation this evening amid criticism of the government's very close relationship with the Unite union. This is the union which is at the heart of the British Airways strike activity which is scheduled to begin at the end of this week and will impact upon the financial stability of the company, affect thousands of passengers and dent the r...
Read More