Pound Falls Despite Solid UK Retail Sales, Still Hurt by Weaker Inflation1057 GMT - The pound falls, failing to benefit from solid U.K. retail sales as it continues to suffer after this week's below-forecast inflation figures, writes Matthew Ryan at Ebury. The data showed U.K. retail sales rose by 0.7% in June, much more than the 0.2% increase expected in a WSJ poll. The pound has been one of the main underperformers this week and its reaction to better-than-expected retail sales has been very limited, he says. (jessica.fleetham@wsj.com)COMPANIES NEWS:FirstGroup FY 2024 Performance in Line So Far; To Launch Buyback Program of Up to GBP115 MlnFirstGroup said Friday that its fiscal 2024 performance in the year-to-date has been in line with expectations. The retailer is anticipated to report a FY 2024 pretax profit of GBP850 million, above its updated guidance of GBP835 million, they say.

Source: Wall Street Journal July 21, 2023 11:56 UTC