British shoppers set aside their concerns about fast-rising inflation following the Brexit vote and stepped up Spending last month at the fastest rate in years, encouraged by fine weather, official data showed.

The unexpectedly strong figures suggest that – at least temporarily – consumers’ mood has become more upbeat in the run-up to a June 8 National election that Prime Minister Theresa May’s ruling Conservatives are tipped to win by a wide margin.

Retail sales volumes jumped by 2.3 percent on the month in April, the Office for National Statistics said on Thursday, beating the median forecast for a 1.0 percent rise in a Reuters poll of economists.

Reuters

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