A surprise surge in retail sales in April helped push the pound to its highest level in eight months as Britain’s consumers shrugged off concerns over falling living standards. Warm weather and the Easter holidays encouraged shoppers back onto UK high streets, with retail sales up 2.3% over the month according to the Office for National Statistics. April’s rise was a significant rebound compared with March, when sales fell 1.4%, easing fears of an imminent consumer slowdown and signalling a decent start to the third quarter. “The latest data showed shoppers continued to shrug off any Brexit and political uncertainty with retail sales beating even the most optimistic expectations,” said Richard Lim, chief executive of the consultancy Retail Economics. The April jump helped retail sales over a broader three-month period grow by 0.3%.

Source: The Guardian May 18, 2017 09:30 UTC