Stocks tick higher as Black Friday fails to give UK retail sales a boost

The FTSE 100 (^FTSE) and European stocks were in the green in early trade on Friday, bounding higher even as the Office for National Statistics published lacklustre retail sales figures for November.

The usual Black Friday sales bump failed to take hold last month, as retail sales volumes dipped by 0.1% year-on-year.

Spending online fell alongside supermarket sales volumes, according to the ONS. Retailers also reported low footfall.

“Retailers have been clear that the date of this year’s budget was unhelpful, unnerving consumers at the very peak of the festive shopping period,” said Danni Hewson, AJ Bell’s head of financial analysis.

“The latest data suggests that shoppers were impacted by all the speculation about potential tax hikes and continued to display an abundance of caution despite Black Friday temptations.”

The figures put a question mark over UK growth, Hewson added: “For the UK economy to grow, it will need consumers to spend and for consumers to spend they need to feel confident.”

London’s premier index rose about 0.1% in morning trade, with energy marketing and distribution company DCC Plc (DCC.L) leading the charge.
The DAX (^GDAXI) in Germany also gained 0.1%.
Over in France, the CAC 40 (^FCHI) hovered above the flatline.
The pan-European STOXX 600 (^STOXX) also rose slightly.
The pound was slightly lower against the dollar (GBPUSD=X), trading just below the $1.34 mark.

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Here’s the US stock futures chart
Lacklustre Black Friday fails to boost retail sales

Following new retail sales data this morning from the Office for National Statistics, the organisation’s senior statistician Hannah Finselbach, said
Treasury touts Autumn Budget for improving public finances

On the public debt figures, chief secretary to the Treasury James Murray said:
UK government borrowing falls but still exceeds expectations

Vicky McKeever writes:

UK government borrowing fell to £11.7bn in November but still came in higher than expected, in the same month that chancellor Rachel Reeves delivered the autumn budget.

This figure was £1.9bn less than in November 2024, according to data released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) on Friday. However, this was higher than expectations of £10bn.

November’s public sector net borrowing figure was lower than the £17.4bn recorded for October and was the lowest for the month since 2021.

Borrowing for the financial year to November totalled £132.3bn, which was £10bn more than the same eight-month period last year. It was also the second-highest April-to-November borrowing on record after 2020.

Tom Davies, senior statistician at the ONS, said: “Despite an increase in spending this month’s borrowing was the lowest November for four years. The main reason for the drop from last year was increased receipts from taxes and national insurance contributions.”

Read more on Yahoo Finance UK
US stock futures mixed

Our US team writes:

US stock futures traded mixed on Friday after snapping a recent losing streak, as signs of cooling inflation and waning AI worries buoyed Wall Street optimism toward the tail end of a topsy-turvy week.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures (YM=F) fell 0.2%, while those on the S&P 500 (ES=F) hovered near the flatline. Meanwhile, contracts on the Nasdaq 100 (NQ=F) rose roughly 0.3%, as stocks steadied after Thursday’s roaring rally.

Investors have gotten through a catch-up week for economic data with next year’s rate-cut hopes intact, having embraced the outcome of this week’s delayed November reports on jobs and consumer inflation despite warnings over their reliability.

The inflation data on Thursday provided the latest spark Wall Street had been searching for. The Consumer Price Index found inflation cooling at a startling pace. The rally came even as some economists pointed to data collection limitations in the report, thanks to the federal government shutdown, and cautioned that January’s reading would give a better read on the overall state of price pressures.
Good morning

Hi! Lucy Harley-McKeown here — about to close out a busy week of economics and finance news.

Off the back of a Bank of England 25 basis point rate cut on Thursday, this morning we had UK public sector finances data, as well as the latest on UK retail sales.

The OBR is also set to release its own public sector finance figures around midday.

In the US, traders will be looking for the latest PCE reading — the Federal Reserve’s preferred inflation gauge used to guide interest rates.

Let’s get to it.