According to recent figures released by the CBI, UK factory orders rose at their fastest rate for six months in June, according to the Confederation of British Industry’s (CBI) Industrial Trends Survey.
A balance of +11% of respondents reported that order books were above normal, the highest figure since an eighteen year high recorded in December 2013. Reports of output over the last three months and expectations for the next three months held steady at levels significantly above their long-run averages.
Retail sales dipped in May for the first time since January according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). Sales volumes were down by 0.5% compared to April. However the wider picture remains increasingly positive; sales over the three months to April were 4.9% higher than the same period a year earlier, the strongest rise on this measure since November 2004.
UK consumer price inflation fell to 1.5% in May according to the ONS, with food prices falling year-on-year for the first time since 2006. This was down from 1.8% in April and the lowest level since October 2009.
Source: Glenigan