Economy
The latest news, updates and analysis on the economy and how it is affecting the UK retail industry. Sign up to the Daily Briefing and let Retail Sector’s business journalists keep you in the picture.
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Oct- 2019 -31 October
Schuh pre-tax profits fall by £7m amid ‘extremely challenging year’
Schuh has reported a £7m fall in pre-tax profits to £6.1m attributed to a second consecutive year of “extremely challenging” conditions for retail, according to accounts filed at Companies House this week. For the year ending January 2019, the footwear retailer reported fall in turnover by over £20m to £288.4m…
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31 October
Treasury Committee urges MPs to reform ‘broken’ business rates
The government has been urged to fix the “broken” business rates system as it is continuing to affect high street retailers, a Treasury committee has said. An influential group of MPs has asked the government to examine alternatives to property tax, which puts more pressure on high street retailers than…
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30 October
Shop prices decrease again in October
Shop price deflation decelerated to 0.4% in October from -0.6% in September, according to new figures from the British Retail Consortium (BRC). The results are below the 12- and six-month average price changes of 0.2% and -0.2%, respectively. Additionally, non-Food deflation decelerated to 1.5% in October, from -1.7% in September,…
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29 October
Retailers report ‘record high’ stock levels in October
Retailers’ stock levels in relation to expected sales were at their highest on record in October, according to the latest monthly CBI Distributive Trends Survey. The news comes against the backdrop of a continuing decline in sales on the high street, and the latest spike in stock adequacy (the highest…
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29 October
Sosander shares jump as revenues surge 53%
Shares in Sosander PLC jumped 12 % in early trading on Monday (28 October) as the retailer reported a strong first-half revenue growth of 53%. For the half-year period ending 30 September 2019, Sosander posted an 84% increase in sales during its second quarter and 112% increase in September alone.…
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22 October
Consumer confidence drops in Q3 amid continued Brexit uncertainty
The Deloitte consumer confidence index fell to -9% in Q3 2019, one point lower than in the previous quarter and two points lower compared to the same period a year ago. Confidence is now at a level last seen in Q4 2018 and below the Deloitte Consumer Tracker’s long-running average.…
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18 October
Retail footfall plummets as autumn begins
Footfall in non-food stores fell by 9.9% year-on-year in September, according to the Retail Traffic Index published by Ipsos Retail Performance. Compared with August, the average weekly footfall in the month fell by -7.3%. Additionally, the number of shoppers visiting the high street in London and the south east continued…
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16 October
Retail sector could face £137m rates hike next year
September’s headline rate of inflation is set to cause more business rates increases in 2020, according to calculations from real estate advisers Altus Group. The firm said the 1.7% uprating for inflation will add an additional £536m to the overall gross business rates burden. As a result, the “embattled” retail…
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15 October
BRC ‘disappointed’ with business rates relief in Queen’s speech
The British Retail Consortium has responded to the Queen’s speech, praising its approach to crime and sustainability but was “surprised and disappointed” at its approach to business rates. Commenting on the speech, which tackled issues such as immigration, crime, business rates and brexit, The BRC said: “The Government should implement…
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15 October
Grocery sales slow to lowest September growth in two years
Shopping momentum has fallen in September, with grocery sales slowing to +1.7% in the last four weeks. According to new data released by market research data company, Nielsen, this is the lowest growth for UK supermarkets in September in two years. Before the autumnal weather took hold in early October,…
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