-
Pound drifting ahead of UK retail sales
It continues to be a quiet week for the British pound. That could change on Friday, with the markets bracing for more bad news from retail sales data for May. Headline retail sales is expected at -4.5%, after an April reading of -.4.9%. Core retail sales are expected to decline by 5.1%, following a -6.1% reading in April. Weak retail sales numbers should not come as a surprise, with UK consumers hammered by surging inflation and grappling with a worsening cost of living crisis. There was no relief (not that any was expected) from yesterday’s inflation report. Headline CPI rose to 9.1% in May, a notch higher than ... (full story)