In a beacon of hope for the retail sector, the British Independent Retailers Association (BIRA) has found silver linings in the latest data from the BRC-Nielsen shop price index.

BIRA, known for its work with over 6,000 independent businesses across the UK, is upbeat about the recent figures, which suggest that retailers are taking significant steps to keep prices low and cater to budget-conscious shoppers.

Here are the key findings:

• Shop price inflation: Shop price annual inflation decelerated to 5.2% in October, dropping from 6.2% in September.
• Non-food inflation: Non-food inflation fell from 4.4% in September to 3.4%, in October.
• Food inflation: Food inflation also saw a decrease, dropping to 8.8% in October, from 9.9% in September.
• Fresh food and ambient food inflation: Fresh food inflation reduced to 8.3% in October, down from 9.6% in September. Ambient food inflation decreased to 9.5% in October, down from 10.4% in September, marking its lowest point since October 2022.

Andrew Goodacre, BIRA CEO said:

"These inflation figures are encouraging and they show that retailers are doing their bit in keeping prices low. They also show a lack of demand on the high street with retailers already discounting heavily in this ‘golden quarter'.

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