Retail sales in Great Britain stalled in March, as the cost of living squeeze continued to hit spending. The Office for National Statistics has reported that British retail sales volumes stagnated in March, after modest growth of only 0.1% in February (revised up from stagnation).
That is weaker than expected; economists polled by Reuters had expected sales growth of 0.3% in March.
While spending on motor fuel and non-food goods rose, there was a drop in spending at department stores, on food and online.
On an annual basis, sales volumes rose 0.8% over the year to March 2024, weaker than the 1% expected.
That leaves them 1.2% below their pre-Covid-19 level in February 2020.
Automotive fuel sales volumes rose to their highest level since May 2022 in March.
Retailers told the ONS the rise was linked to increased footfall on their forecourts.
Reports of explosions in Iran overnight have pushed up the oil price, as investors fear an escalation in the Middle East crisis.
Brent crude soared back over $90 amid reports of explosions near the Iranian city of Isfahan, with US officials confirming that Israel had carried out military operations against Iran.
Oil jumped, over fears that the conflict had entered a new phase, while stocks fell.
Metal and soft commodity prices – such as wheat, soybeans and corn - also rose, over fears of shipping disruption and higher energy input costs.
Higher oil and food prices, and shipping costs, would add to inflation, undermining efforts to bring the cost of living crisis under control.
But markets are calming down, with Brent crude now easing back to $89 a barrel (up 2% today) as Iran appeared to play down the action.
The agenda • 2pm BST: IMF/World Bank spring meeting continues in Washington DC • 3.15pm BST: Bank of England deputy governor Dave Ramsden on panel about lessons to learn from post-pandemic inflation
If you have any questions or comments about any of our newsletters please email [email protected]
… there is a good reason why not to support the Guardian
Not everyone can afford to pay for news right now. That is why we keep our journalism open for everyone to read. If this is you, please continue to read for free.
But if you are able to, then there are three good reasons to support us today.
1
Our quality, investigative journalism is a powerful force for scrutiny at a time when the rich and powerful are getting away with more and more
2
We are independent and have no billionaire owner telling us what to report, so your money directly powers our reporting
3
It doesn’t cost much, and takes less time than it took to read this message
Help power the Guardian’s journalism in this crucial year of news, whether with a small sum or a larger one. If you can, please support us on a monthly basis . It takes less than a minute to set up, and you can rest assured that you're making a big impact every single month in support of open, independent journalism. Thank you.
You are receiving this email because you are a subscriber to Business Today. Guardian News & Media Limited - a member of Guardian Media Group PLC. Registered Office: Kings Place, 90 York Way, London, N1 9GU. Registered in England No. 908396
There should be no rush to replay Hipgnosis’s noisy stock market experiment 
