UK Retail Sales Show Modest Rebound

Retail sales in the U.K. rose unexpectedly to close the first quarter of the year on stronger food sales, partly erasing a significant decrease during the prior month, according to The Daily Telegraph.

Retail sales in the U.K. rose unexpectedly to close the first quarter of the year on stronger food sales, partly erasing a significant decrease during the prior month, according to The Daily Telegraph. On Thursday, the Office for National Statistics reported that retail sales volumes increased by 0.2% in March from the previous month, defying economists’ expectation for a 0.5% decrease. The gain pushed retail sales to a 1.3% year-over-year increase, which also beat expectations for a 0.9% annual gain. The positive data represents a rebound after retail sales shed 0.9% in February.

The report cited strong food sales as a driving factor behind the overall increase, and the monthly data capped a 0.3% gain in retail sales during the first quarter of 2011. The growth indicates that retailers will make a modest positive contribution to gross domestic product growth for the first quarter in a report due next week. The data came on the heels of a very weak survey from the British Retail Consortium, and could somewhat reassure Bank of England policymakers in the stability of U.K. consumer demand.

Click here to read the story from The Daily Telegraph.