British retail sales grew by 0.4% in March, according to the Office for National Statistics, boosted by sunny weather aiding clothing sales.
This pleasing bounce comes after economists, polled by Reuters, had forecast a 0.4% decline.
Increase in retail sales continues
March marked the third consecutive month of rising retail sales, adding 0.1 percent to GDP for the first quarter. The UK economy grew by 0.5 percent in February, exceeding the Bank of England’s 0.25 percent forecast.
The Met Office noted March as the third-sunniest on record, boosting sales, especially in outdoor clothing. Non-food store sales rose by 1.7 percent, reaching their highest level since March 2022.
Trump and consumer confidence
Alex Kerr, economist at Capital Economics, noted that the decrease in consumer confidence in April following changes in US tariffs may result in households spending more cautiously in the upcoming months.
Figures published on Friday by research company GfK indicated that consumer confidence fell four points to minus 23 this month, marking the lowest level in over a year. Earlier in the week, the S&P Global PMI indices showed that US tariffs and rising costs had affected business morale. Rob Wood, economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics, commented that retail sales were stable before President Trump’s tariffs impacted consumer confidence.
Viewpoint
April heralded a swathe of price rises in utilities. Those paying attention to the tariff war playing across the news cannot be filled with confidence. Those in the know understand how angry Americans feel about unfair trading conditions, in particular manufacturing jobs going overseas to protect corporate interests and advantage foreign workers.
Trump’s belief that addressing the perceived trading imbalance through tariffs will force countries who are operating unfair practices to accede to his desire to advantage Americans. The rhetoric surrounding the idea that America is the victim in international trade and the world’s protector, is unlikely to diminish until Americans are paying for the price rises tariffs will bring.
In the UK, we can, and arguably should, choose to buy British and to buy local – supporting our own food production and manufacturing industries – albeit stopping short of the all-out trade war-inducing protectionism being seen on the other side of the Atlantic right now
