Shop prices remains deflationary for 17th month: BRC
Overall shop prices reported deflation for the seventeenth consecutive month, accelerating to 1.8% in September from 1.6% in August.
This is according to the BRC-Nielsen Shop Price Index in which non-food industries (including clothing and footwear) reported acceleration in deflation of 3.2% in September from 2.9% in August.
Helen Dickinson, British Retail Consortium director general, said: “The seventeenth consecutive month of deflation is good news for hard-pressed households. Retailers are turning their attention to Christmas by reading current conditions and matching consumer sentiment well with their promotions and offers.”
Mike Watkins, head of retail and business insight, Nielsen, said: “Whilst sales patterns are still difficult to predict not least following the unusually warm late summer, we can anticipate a continuation of the current low levels inflation and even deflation for the rest of the year. This will help shoppers to plan their spending in the run up to the start of Christmas trading.’’
