The latest figures from the Office for National Statistics certainly suggest that the retail sector is slowly recovering since the coronavirus crisis. In July 2020 the volume of retail sales increased by 3.6% and is 3% higher than pre-pandemic levels in February 2020....
All non-essential shops expected to reopen from 15 June The Prime Minister, Boris Johnson has announced that all non-essential retailers in England will be able to reopen from 15 June but added the caveat that this is “contingent on progress in the fight against...
March retail sales decline due to coronavirus lockdown Retail sales in March decreased by 4.3% compared to 2019, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC). Figures from Barclaycard advocated a large increase in supermarket sales as individuals began to...
UK consumer confidence increases in final quarter of 2019 With retail sales decreasing in December and 2019 being the worst year for retail in 25 years it comes as a surprise that consumer confidence actually increased by 0.5% in the final quarter of 2019. As...
Retail sales on the rise After a disappointing end to 2019, British consumers began to spend again in January with sales volume increasing by 0.9% after December’s decrease of 0.5%. This increase in sales was much larger than that expected by economists and the...
For the first time in 25 years retail sales dropped in 2019 according to the leading UK retail industry body, total sales decreased by 0.1% compared to 2018. Sales during the Christmas period were particularly weak falling 0.9% in November and December (data from the...
Hawsons Chartered Accountants turned 165 years old in 2019 Hawsons Chartered Accountants was founded in the city of Sheffield in 1854 – more than 25 years before the creation of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales – by Alfred Allott and John...
Tax implications of the Election Result The general election has ended and the Conservatives have secured a large majority winning 365 seats. What does this mean for tax? How will the election result affect you or your business? Tax expert Craig Walker provides a...
Christmas Markets face extra challenges due to Brexit costs City centres will soon be transformed with the arrival of Christmas markets. However, the unpredictability surrounding Brexit means these festive features have faced extra challenges this year. The organisers...
Analysts are reporting that the number of shoppers purchasing on the high street has declined by around 10% over the past year in some cities across the U.K. Unsurprisingly, the main reasons cited are the continuing rise of online shopping along with concerns over...
For the first time ever, contactless payments have accounted for 50% of all debit card payments. Credit and debit card payments made in July grew 5.7% year-on-year increasing to 1.6 billion, and contactless payments on debit cards were used 647 million times alone....
The Chancellor Philip Hammond presented the last Spring Budget on Wednesday 8 March 2017. In his speech the Chancellor was keen to point out that he wanted the tax system to be fair, particularly in relation to the distinction between employed and self-employed...