REIGATE, ENGLAND ? A new survey released earlier this week by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) notes that eighty percent of British retailers expect retail sales in 2010 to be the same as 2009, The Retail Bulletin reports.
The British Retail Consortium's 2010 Concerns Snapshot Survey also noted that no retailers expected sales to decline in 2010, while slightly more than 20 percent thought they would increase.
Among retailers' main concerns are weak consumer demand (22 percent of respondents), rising unemployment (20 percent of respondents), and an overall weak economy (16 percent).
The general uncertainty facing U.K. retailers carries over into employment levels, a key element of economic recovery. Along those lines, the job market appears dim--one-third of retailers said that they expect to decrease employment in 2010.
"[F]actors such as weak consumer demand and rising unemployment, are at the heart of retailers' concerns about how the recovery will pan out," said Stephen Robertson, British Retail Consortium Director General. "The inevitable tax rises will mean people have less to spend and retailers will have to work even harder to win the battle for hard-pressed customers."
The BRC made an appeal to politicians to help retailers emerge strong from the downturn.
"Politicians of all parties must recognize it's business that'll take us out of recession with retail leading the way," Robertson said. "They must bring the public finances under control while avoiding excessive tax rises that would undermine demand, jobs and consumer confidence. Targeted, substantial and genuine pruning of public spending must take priority over tax increases."
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