USA: UK retail prices fall

Shop prices have fallen again in Britain's shops, which is good news for consumers but bad news for retailers. According to the British Retail Consortium, shop prices fell for the 13th consecutive month in May and were 1.1% lower than May last year. "Prices have shown a consistent downward trend for more than a year now," said Mark Bradshaw, the BRC acting director general. "Whilst deflation in the high street is great news for customers, retailers are seeing margins squeezed at the same time as pressure is applied to their operating costs," he said. The organisation said that food prices fell slightly faster than non-food goods due to lower prices of produce, particularly the price of tomatoes. But fish prices rose because of supply difficulties.