UK Dec retail sales: A big miss on expectations

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) published the UK’s retail trade report, which showed that the UK consumer spending figures showed a bigger-than-expected drop in the month of December.

The UK’s retail volumes came in at -1.5% in December m/m, while the annualized retail spending eased 1.4%. Markets had estimated a -0.6% reading on a monthly basis; while a 3.0% print was expected on yearly basis.

Retail sales excluding volatile items such as fuel also bettered expectations, arriving at -1.6% m/m and 1.3% y/y.