Shops were given a surprisingly big boost in January as official figures showed retail sales rose by 1.7%. Only a 0.3% rise had been forecast by economists polled by Reuters. It's the first growth after four consecutive months of contraction and follows a fall of 0.6% in the key shopping month of December.
Money blog: What are your rights if you have bad phone signal?. Retail sales figures are significant as they measure household consumption, the largest expenditure across the UK economy. Growing retail sales can mean economic growth, which the government has repeatedly said is its top priority.
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