GBP/USD nears 1.2100 as UK retail sales unexpectedly rise 0.2% m/m in July

The UK retail sales arrive at +0.2% m/m in July.
The UK core retail sales rise 0.2% m/m in July.

Dhwani Mehta FXStreet

The UK retail sales came in at +0.2% over the month in July vs. -0.2% expected and +0.9% previous. The core retail sales, stripping the auto motor fuel sales, stood at +0.2% m/m vs. -0.2% expected and +0.8% previous.

On an annualized basis, the UK retail sales rose 3.3% in July versus 2.6% expected and +3.8% prior while the core retail sales also advanced 2.9% in the reported month versus +3.6% previous and +2.3% expectations.

Main Points (via ONS):

“The quantity bought in July 2019 increased by 0.2% when compared with the previous month, with strong growth of 6.9% in non-store retailing.

Department stores’ growth increased for the first time this year with month-on-month growth of 1.6%; this was following six consecutive months of decline.

In July 2019, online retailing accounted for 19.9% of total retailing compared with 18.9% in June 2019, with an overall growth of 12.7% when compared with the same month a year earlier.”

GBP/USD picked up fresh bids and hit daily tops at 1.2085 after the UK Retail Sales delivered an upside surprise across the time horizon.

Author

Dhwani Mehta

FXStreet

Residing in Mumbai (India), Dhwani is a Senior Analyst and Manager of the Asian session at FXStreet. She has over 10 years of experience in analyzing and covering the global financial markets, with specialization in Forex and commodities markets.

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