UK retail sales to fall by -1.0% m/m in December - TDS

Analysts at TDS provide their thoughts on the UK retail sales data for the month of December due for release at 0930 GMT today.

Key Quotes:

“GBP We look for retail sales to fall by -1.0% m/m in December, losing some ground after the solid 1.2% gain in November. While there were some positive signs that month, with the services PMI, for example, managing to outperform manufacturing and construction sectors, the reports from most of the major retailers have been somewhat disappointing, with the y/y rise in sales appearing to be merely a function of higher prices rather than higher volumes. So we look for a fairly sharp pullback in December sales.”