| Time | Country | Event | Period | Previous value | Forecast | Actual |
|---|
| 06:00 | United Kingdom | Retail Sales (YoY) | April | -3.9% | -2.8% | -3% |
| 06:00 | United Kingdom | Retail Sales (MoM) | April | -1.2% | 0.3% | 0.5% |
| 06:30 | Switzerland | Non Farm Payrolls | Quarter I | 5.398 | | 5.389 |
| 06:45 | France | Consumer confidence | May | 83 | 84 | 83 |
GBP rose against other major currencies in the European session on Friday as investors assessed Britain’s retail sales data for April.
According to the report from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the UK’s retail sales rose by 0.5% m/m in April, rebounding after a downwardly revised 1.2% m/m decline in March. Economists had anticipated a 0.3% m/m gain. Britain’s core retail sales, which exclude fuel, also topped economists’ expectations, climbing 0.8% m/m compared to the projection of a 0.3% m/m gain.
The April rebound in the UK’s retail activity indicated that consumer confidence is recovering despite recent rate hikes and sticky inflation, putting additional pressure on the Bank of England to continue its tightening campaign to bring down elevated price pressures.