Consumer confidence plays a large role in any nation’s economy, and analysts in the United Kingdom are hoping that the increasing confidence levels of its citizens will be enough to drive up retail sales, which have recently become stagnant.

According to research from the CBI, during the first two weeks of January, there was a 17 percent jump in sales among U.K. retailers from the same time a year ago, which beat economists’ expectations of a 10 percent rise. However, the source notes that the growth was not near the levels seen in the last months of 2012. For October, sales increased by 30 percent from the previous year, while November experienced a 33 percent boost. December came in a year-over-year jump of 19 percent.

On the other hand, analysts forecast that improving levels of consumer confidence throughout the U.K. will give retailers the sales growth they are looking for. Retail Week reports that people are becoming more confident not only in their personal finances but the nation’s economic conditions as well. This could soon be seen in sales totals in the coming months, the source writes.

This entry was posted by Retail Pro on Monday, February 4th, 2013 at 4:42 am .