UK: Retail Sales likely grew 0.1 percent in August – Wells Fargo

Analysts at Wells Fargo suggest that the U.K. is scheduled to release August retail sales data today and note that the real retail sales have been decelerating recently as rising inflation and stagnant wage growth have taken a bite out of household purchasing power.

Key Quotes

“The consensus estimate expects that retail sales grew 0.1 percent in August, month over month, and 1.2 percent on a year-ago basis. Both these estimates represent a slowdown from July in which retail sales grew 0.3 percent month over month and 1.5 percent year over year. On a year-over-year basis, real retail spending was up only 2.6 percent in Q2, which clearly represents a slowdown relative to the breakneck pace of the past few years. Looking ahead, we forecast that real GDP growth will strengthen modestly in 2018 as some of the forces that have led to a slowdown this year reverse, although uncertainty related to Brexit continues to lurk in the background as a major downside risk to the economy.”