UK retail sales hold up despite Brexit turmoil

 LONDON (AFP) - British retail sales steadied in April, beating expectations of a drop, official data showed yesterday, with consumer spending ticking along despite Brexit and wider political strains in the UK.

Sales by volume were unchanged last month from March, when they had jumped by 1.2 percent, the Office for National Statistics said in a statement.

“The quantity bought was flat in April... when compared with the previous month, with growths in clothing, non-store retailing and fuel offset by falls in all other main sectors,” the ONS said. Analysts’ consensus forecast had been for a drop of 0.3 percent in April’s retail sales month-on-month.

“April’s retail sales figures are a timely reminder that political uncertainty is having no discernible impact on households’ overall spending,” noted Samuel Tombs, chief UK economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics.

British Prime Minister Theresa May yesterday announced she would step down as leader on June 7 after failing to convince MPs to support her Brexit deal.
The resignation will signal the formal start of a leadership contest during which May would remain as caretaker prime minster.