The United Kingdom (UK) Retail Sales rose 0.4% month-over-month (MoM) in December after falling 0.1% in November, according to the latest data published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) on Friday.
Markets projected a decrease of 0.1% in the reported month.
The core Retail Sales, stripping the auto motor fuel sales, increased 0.3% MoM in December, compared with the previous decline of 0.4% (revised from -0.2%). This figure came in above the market consensus of a 0.2% drop.
The annual Retail Sales in the UK climbed 2.5% in December versus 1.8% prior (revised from 0.6%), above the consensus of 1.0%. The annual core Retail Sales jumped 3.1% in the same month versus a 2.6% rise prior (revised from 1.2%). This reading came in better than the market expectations of 1.4%.
Market reaction to the UK Retail Sales report
The upbeat UK Retail Sales report fails to boost the Pound Sterling. The GBP/USD pair is trading 0.06% lower on the day at 1.3488 as of writing.
Pound Sterling Price Today
The table below shows the percentage change of British Pound (GBP) against listed major currencies today. British Pound was the strongest against the Japanese Yen.
| USD | EUR | GBP | JPY | CAD | AUD | NZD | CHF | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| USD | 0.05% | 0.05% | 0.29% | 0.00% | -0.17% | -0.03% | 0.08% | |
| EUR | -0.05% | -0.00% | 0.24% | -0.05% | -0.22% | -0.08% | 0.03% | |
| GBP | -0.05% | 0.00% | 0.26% | -0.03% | -0.22% | -0.10% | 0.03% | |
| JPY | -0.29% | -0.24% | -0.26% | -0.28% | -0.45% | -0.32% | -0.20% | |
| CAD | -0.00% | 0.05% | 0.03% | 0.28% | -0.18% | -0.04% | 0.09% | |
| AUD | 0.17% | 0.22% | 0.22% | 0.45% | 0.18% | 0.14% | 0.25% | |
| NZD | 0.03% | 0.08% | 0.10% | 0.32% | 0.04% | -0.14% | 0.11% | |
| CHF | -0.08% | -0.03% | -0.03% | 0.20% | -0.09% | -0.25% | -0.11% |
The heat map shows percentage changes of major currencies against each other. The base currency is picked from the left column, while the quote currency is picked from the top row. For example, if you pick the British Pound from the left column and move along the horizontal line to the US Dollar, the percentage change displayed in the box will represent GBP (base)/USD (quote).
This section below was published on January 23 at 5:11 GMT as a preview of the UK Retail Sales report.
The UK Retail Sales Overview
The United Kingdom (UK) docket has the Retail Sales data for December to be released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) on Friday, later this session at 07:00 GMT.
UK Retail Sales are expected to decline by 0.1% month-over-month (MoM) in December, following a 0.1% decline seen in November. On an annualized basis, Retail Sales are seen rising 1% during the reported month, inching higher from the previous increase of 0.6%.
Core Retail Sales, stripping the basket of motor fuel sales, are expected to fall 0.2% MoM, matching the prior decline, while YoY growth may rise to 1.4% from 1.2% in November.
How could the UK Retail Sales affect GBP/USD?
GBP/USD pair may remain silent even if UK Retail Sales data for December come stronger-than-expected, as the Bank of England (BoE) is widely expected to stay put on a gradual easing path, even as price pressures accelerated in December. Focus will be shifted toward the preliminary S&P Global Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) data for January from the United Kingdom (UK) and the United States (US) due later in the day.
The GBP/USD pair may regain its ground as the US Dollar (USD) struggles with increased risk aversion, which could be attributed to the geopolitical tensions. US President Donald Trump initially threatened tariffs against European countries opposing his Greenland plan, but later backed down after securing a NATO framework agreement for a potential deal.
Technically, the GBP/USD pair remains steady after gaining more than 0.5% in the previous session, trading around 1.3500 at the time of writing. The pair may target the three-month high of 1.3562 as the next barrier. The immediate support lies at the nine-day Exponential Moving Average (EMA) of 1.3451, followed by the 50-day EMA at 1.3398.