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U.K. Retailers Get Black Friday Boost as Sales Surge

U.K. Retailers Get Black Friday Boost as Sales Surge

(Bloomberg) -- Black Friday gave U.K. retailers an unexpected boost in the run-up to the key Christmas trading period.

The volume of goods sold in stores and online jumped 1.4 percent in November, the most in six months, following two months of declines. An increase of just 0.3 percent was forecast in a Bloomberg survey. Sales excluding auto fuel rose 1.2 percent.

U.K. Retailers Get Black Friday Boost as Sales Surge

Key Insights

  • Office for National Statistics says increase driven by 5.3 percent rise in sales of household goods. Overall non-food sales rose 2.2 percent; food was unchanged.
  • Sales will grow in the fourth quarter unless December sees a monthly decline of 1 percent or more.
  • Annual sales growth accelerated to 3.6 percent. The survey was carried out between Oct. 28 and Nov. 24, a period that covered Black Friday on Nov. 23. Non-seasonally adjusted sales were up over 13 percent from a year earlier.
  • Online sales exceeded 20 percent of the total for the first time. Promotions began as much as two weeks before Black Friday.

Market Reaction

  • The pound climbed after the data and was trading $1.2687 as of 9:40 a.m. London time, up 0.6 percent on the day.

Get More

  • Data may help retail stocks, which have fallen over 16 percent since the end of October after warnings of difficult trading from firms including Sports Direct and Asos.
  • Asos Co-Founder Pledges Entire Stake Against Loan After Plunge
  • Bank of England is expected to keep interest rates unchanged today and traders have all-but ruled out an increase before Britain leaves the European Union on March 29.

To contact the reporter on this story: David Goodman in London at dgoodman28@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Fergal O'Brien at fobrien@bloomberg.net, Andrew Atkinson

©2018 Bloomberg L.P.