Extra national holidays and warm days come to the aid of retailers
APRIL’S Bank holidays and warm weather have provided a welcome boost to the UK’s ailing high street, a survey revealed today.
After a disappointing start to the year, retail sales were up 3.7 per cent last month on a like-for-like basis, the BDO high street tracker suggests.
“While there are tentative signs that the underlying conditions are starting to tilt in the right direction, retailers need to hold tight — We’re not out of the woods yet,” said the BDO’s Don Williams. “But the UK consumer is a resilient beast. Shopping is part of our national psyche.”
Meanwhile inflationary expectations have reached a 29-month high according to the BDO’s business trends research, which also predicted just 1.4 per cent growth for the UK economy this year.