By tredu.com • 6/20/2025
Tredu
The Pound Sterling (GBP) held firm on Friday, shrugging off a significant fall in UK Retail Sales, which plunged by 2.7% month-on-month — the sharpest decline since December 2023. The data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed a much larger drop than economists’ forecast of a modest 0.5% decline, signaling weak consumer spending momentum.
Year-over-year retail sales also fell unexpectedly by 1.3%, against expectations of a 1.7% increase. Department stores and Textile, Clothing & Footwear outlets contributed heavily to the downturn, marking a broad-based slowdown in consumer demand.
Despite the soft retail data, the Bank of England (BoE) left interest rates unchanged at 4.25% in its latest policy meeting. However, the data has strengthened market expectations for two rate cuts before year-end, as weak consumer spending may pressure the central bank to ease monetary policy.
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