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This is the best summary I could come up with:
Retailers are facing a tough new year as weak consumer demand is expected to combine with a barrage of increased costs, including the higher minimum wage.
Shoppers are likely to keep their spending on pause during the first months of 2024, according to forecasts published today by the Retail Think Tank, a group of industry experts who analyse the health of the sector, as mounting mortgage and rental costs weigh on consumer confidence.
Clothing sales have been particularly hard hit amid relatively warm weather, and shoppers have held back from making expensive purchases such as furniture or big electrical goods.
Nick Bubb, the independent retail analyst who also sits on the panel, said: “The final quarter of 2023 saw a lacklustre performance with volume pressure in non-food categories and the real sense that consumers are tightening their belts.
The Bank of England’s announcement that interest rates will remain at an elevated level will not bring comfort for those coming to the end of mortgage deals, car finance agreements or needing a loan, while gloom around the ailing economy could undermine employment confidence and opportunities.
“Despite further falls in inflation and, from the middle of the year, the Bank of England potentially starting to reduce interest rates, we expect the UK economy will struggle to gain momentum in 2024.
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