e-spaces

British retail sales plunged last month at their fastest pace since records began 25 years ago, while a growing number of Britons predicted prices would fall, not rise, next year.

The downbeat tone for the quarterly sales survey by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) chimed with gloomy news from retailers as expectations for inflation tumbled, giving shoppers fresh incentive to delay purchases.

Flagship department store John Lewis reported weekly sales down 13 percent on a year ago. Both Woolworths and furniture chain MFI called in administrators last week.

“The sharp drop in the CBI survey confirmed anecdotal evidence that the past few weeks have been dreadful for
most retailers,” said Vicky Redwood at Capital Economics.

A survey from pollster GfK NOP showed that UK consumer confidence rose unexpectedly last month, but remained not far from August’s record low.

Analysts said the reading, which chimed with increases in German and French consumer confidence indicators earlier last week, might well have been driven by relief over falling petrol and food prices.

The CBI’s distributive trades survey balance fell to minus 46 from minus 27 in October, worse than the drop to minus 35 that economists had forecast.

The index was last this low in August, which was the weakest reading since the series began in 1983. -
REUTERS