UK retail sales for July rose by almost four times as much as forecast, notching up the biggest increase in the last five months. The Office of National Statistics (ONS) reported the July retail sales climbed 1.1% far outpacing the forecast rise of 0.3%, on the year sales increased 1.3%. The strength seen in retail sales reinforces our position that we may well see a slower pace of growth in the third quarter, compared with the second quarter, but we are not expecting things to turn negative in Q3.
The pound immediately leapt higher against the dollar gaining a little over a cent as investors were relieved by the much better than expected results. The Eur/Gbp cross lost ground quickly too after the release as the pound gained against almost all its trading partners.
Written by Jonathan Granby, DailyFX Research Team
If you wish to contact the author with comments of questions email jgranby@fxcm.com
DailyFX provides forex news and technical analysis on the trends that influence the global currency markets.
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