Retail is leading recovery, says CRR

Date: 3rd August 2010

Recent improvements in the UK's retail sector could be good news for the country's economy as a whole, it has been suggested.

Figures from the latest Trades Survey from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) revealed that high street sales increased year-on-year last month and exceeded many experts' expectations.

Professor Joshua Bamfield, director of the Centre for Retail Research (CRR), explained the importance of the retail sector, saying it accounts for one-quarter of the UK's GDP.

"Retail has got a lot of stick in the last year or so. Perhaps it encourages people to shop, to spend money that they don't have," he said.

"But the other side of it is that it is a success story and it does show that as the retail industry is moving out of recession it is helping to create jobs, which [is] what we need."

The CBI report showed that 51 per cent of retailers reported a rise in sales in July, while only 18 per cent said sales had declined.

Posted by Jacob Williams