- Prior -1.4%
- Retail sales -4.9% vs -7.2% y/y expected
- Prior +0.9%
- Retail sales (ex autos, fuel) +1.4% vs -0.2% m/m expected
- Prior -1.1%
- Retail sales (ex autos, fuel) -6.1% vs -8.4% y/y expected
- Prior -0.6%
UK retail sales volumes unexpectedly picked up in April as food store sales volumes rose by 2.8% and non-store retailing sales volumes rose by 3.7% on the month. Meanwhile, automotive fuel sales volumes rose by 1.4% after recording a 4.2% fall in March when record increases in petrol prices impacted sales.
It looks like the inflation impact is still not taking a continuously painful toll on consumer demand just yet.
As for the annual estimates, keep in mind that in April 2021 saw the reopening of all non-essential retail in the UK after a prolonged period of lockdown. As such, there was a massive surge in activity on pent-up demand resulting in a big jump in retail sales a year ago. Hence, the annual estimate drop mainly reflects the base effect from that.