UK Retail Sales rise 0.5% MoM in April vs. 0.3% expected

The UK Retail Sales came in at 0.5% MoM in April, beating estimates.
Core Retail Sales for the UK jumped 0.8% MoM in April.
GBP/USD holds the bounce below 1.2350 on mixed UK data.

Dhwani Mehta FXStreet

The UK Retail Sales rose 0.5% over the month in April vs. 0.3% expected and -1.2% previous. The Core Retail Sales, stripping the auto motor fuel sales, increased 0.8% MoM vs. 0.3% expected and -1.4% previous.

The annual UK Retail Sales declined 3.0% in April versus -2.8% expected and March’s -3.9% figure while the Core Retail Sales decreased 2.6% in the reported month versus -2.8% expectations and -4.0% previous.

Main points (via ONS)

Non-food stores sales volumes rose by 1.0% in April 2023, following a fall of 1.8% in March when poor weather conditions throughout most of March affected sales.

Food stores sales volumes rose by 0.7% in April 2023, following a fall of 0.8% in March 2023; sales volumes were 2.7% below their pre-coronavirus (COVID-19) February 2020 levels.

Non-store retailing (mainly online retailers) sales volumes rose by 0.2% in April 2023, following a fall of 1.4% in March 2023.

Despite falling fuel prices, automotive fuel sales volumes fell by 2.2% in April 2023, following a rise of 0.1% in March 2023.

FX implications

GBP/USD is sustaining its minor recovery at around 1.2335 after mixed UK Retail Sales data. The spot was last seen trading up 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.

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