Lockdown Leads To Near Halt in Retail.......>

UK DATA: Lockdown Leads To Near Halt in Retail Footfall

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- Apr BRC-Shoppertrak Footfall -84.7% Y/Y (Mar -44.7%) 

- Footfall worst in shopping centres, slightly better in retail parks

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A full month of lockdown led to the sharpest decline on record of the BRC

footfall monitor. The index plunged to -84.7%, down from -44.7% in the previous

month amid the unprecedented conditions retailers face during the crisis. While

shopping centres saw the largest drop of -87.8%, retail parks (-62.4%) fared

slightly better due to a higher proportion of supermarkets. Footfall on high

streets was down 81.8% in April as local convenience stores saw a rise in

footfall. The survey notes that lower footfall is likely to continue, however a

small increase in footfall in Germany after shops were allowed to open provide a

ray of hope for British retailers. German footfall rose by 10.7pp from -98.3% in

Mar to -87.6% in Apr, when shops opened their doors again in mid Apr.