UK Retail Sales drop by 0.9% MoM in March vs. -0.5% expected
- The UK Retail Sales came in at -0.9% MoM in March, a big miss.
- Core Retail Sales for the UK drops by 1.0% MoM in March.
- The Cable keeps the red below 1.2450 on unimpressive UK data.
The UK Retail Sales arrived at -0.9% over the month in March vs. -0.5% expected and 1.1% previous. The Core Retail Sales, stripping the auto motor fuel sales, dropped by 1.0% MoM vs. -0.7% expected and 1.4% previous.
On an annualized basis, the UK Retail Sales declined 3.1% in March versus -3.1% expected and -3.3% prior while the Core Retail Sales decreased 3.2% in the reported month versus -3.1% expectations and -3.0% previous.
Main points (via ONS)
“Non-food stores sales volumes fell by 1.3% in March 2023, following a rise of 2.4% in February, with feedback from retailers that poor weather conditions throughout most of March affected sales.”
“Food store sales volumes fell by 0.7% in March 2023, following a rise of 0.6% in February 2023.”
“Non-store retailing (predominantly online retailers) sales volumes fell by 0.8% in March 2023, following a rise of 0.3% in February 2023.”
“Automotive fuel sales volumes rose by 0.2% in March 2023, following a fall of 1.2% in February 2023; sales remain 8.5% below their pre-coronavirus (COVID-19) February 2020 levels.”
FX implications
GBP/USD is keeping its downbeat momentum intact at around 1.2430 after disappointing UK Retail Sales data. The spot was last seen trading down 0.13% on the day.
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.
