We did not expect any change in interest rates today from the Bank of England, although clearly a further reduction in the run-up to Christmas would have been helpful to both retailers and industry in general. |
We keep asking the bank where they think this growth is going to come from. With people increasingly worried about rising household bills, unless there is some stimulus from the bank itself, we are not going to see any substantial growth. |
While most larger retailers have a broad spectrum of suppliers and are not unduly exposed to China, other retailers will be forced to look at sourcing from other low cost countries, |
While the growth in November was against a weak comparison in November 2004, it is better than many had expected and the lift out of negative territory is encouraging in itself. |