Retail Sales Data Down
Retailers had a poor end to 2007, booking the lowest figures in three years. The large retailer Marks & Spencer drop to a 19 year low on the LSE today after disappointing figures were released today at 9:00 (GMT).
Sir Stuart Rose acknowledged the difficult times in the retail sector in the intermin report , he said “market conditions became more challenging through November and December.”
The technical chart for MKS:LSE shows this decline being reflected in the share price over the past two months.
Retail Woes
The British Retail Consortium that the value of last months sales were up 2.3% against a forecast 2.9% growth over the period.
Other large retailers faired badly, with analysts downgrading retailers such as Next and Debenhams. Shares in Next PLC fell by 8.5% and 13% for Debenhams.
The disappointing figures are being linked with the rising wholesale energy costs, which are in turn being passed onto consumers. With the cost of living increasing, consumers are less likely to spend money on clothes and non-essentials.
Sir Stuart Rose said, “about the only thing that isn’t going up is the cost of clothing. People are being squeezed.”
This slow-down in the economy has led some to call for the BoE to reduce interest rates further. Whether this happens remains to be seen.
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Its not just the data - - - the quality of clothing is also down at Marks and Sparks.