A widely-followed gauge of US consumer sentiment picked up more quickly than anticipated at the start of 2020, pointing to a still solid outlook for spending. The Conference Board‘s consumer confidence index rose from December’s upwardly-revised print of 128.2 to 131.6 (consensus: 128.0). A sub-index tracking consumers’ assessment of current …
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At home, foreign trade data for November are scheduled to be published on Monday, followed by readings on consumer prices and retail sales in December set to follow on Wednesday and Friday, respectively. Investors will be scrutinising those reports for further signs of weakness which might cement expectations in financial …
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Royal Mail staff voted overwhelmingly in favour of going on their first strike in a decade. Over 97% of votes by members of the Communication Workers Union backed a strike. The turnout was 76% (around 110,000 UK postal workers). The result was the largest yes vote for national industrial action …
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Cash payments have dropped to third place behind debit and credit card spending in 2018 for the first time. The British Retail Consortium’s latest Payment Survey found that debit cards are still the most popular method of payment, accounting for almost three-in-five transactions. The use of cash payments has been …
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Royal Mail said on Thursday that its first-quarter performance was in line with its expectations as it backed its outlook for 2019-20. In a brief statement ahead of its annual general meeting, the company said: “All other targets and ambitions as set out in our financial results for the full …
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