UK retailers hit as France appears to stave off “Le crunch”
The reality of lower consumer spending over the Christmas period and a downturn in the global economy became all too apparent in the UK on Monday as one of Britain’s most well-established mid-price footwear retailers Dolcis went into administration, while only last week another struggling footwear chain Stead & Simpson sold 25 of its Famous Footwear factory outlet stores to shoe tycoon Harvey Jacobson, owner of the Gola, Frank Wright, Ravel, and Lotus brands. But while experts in the UK are expecting further problems in the future as household budgets are put under more strain, across the channel in France the figures are telling a very different story.
According to the latest statistics from Institut National de la Statistique et des Études Économiques (INSEE), consumer spending on manufactured goods increased 2% month-on-month in December, the fastest rise recorded since August 2006 and well ahead of most forecasts.
Even more surprising was that it was higher cost goods that recorded the best performances with car sales improving a significant 5.8%, while textiles and leather goods increased 2.5% having fallen 2.6% in November.
Whether the figures in France will continue to climb moving into 2008 remains to be seen, but one thing that is sure is that while France and the UK may be neighbours, the mood in the two countries appears to be poles apart at present.
