Reply #14: europe: September retail sales weaken at fastest in 16 months [View All]

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http://uk.reuters.com/article/2011/09/27/uk-cbi-retail-sales-idUKTRE78Q13C20110927

(Reuters) - Retail sales weakened at their fastest pace in 16 months in September and stores expect little improvement in October as struggling consumers clamp down on spending, a survey by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) showed on Tuesday.

The CBI distributive trades survey's retail sales balance edged down to -15 this month from -14 in August. That was the lowest since May 2010 and in line with analysts' forecasts.

Underlying sales were even weaker, with the balance gauging the three-month moving average falling to -11 from -7, its lowest since August 2009.

The figures were the latest in a recent string of poor data, which has raised expectations the Bank of England may soon inject more stimulus into the economy to shore up growth.