Just as everything seemed to be stabilizing on UK’s economic front, retail sales figures tell a different story. Figures released today indicate consumers have decreased spending in the New Year. Annual increase in sales was 1.3 percent, the lowest in more than a year. Most major retailers in the region have reported significant decline in sales.

The UK is Europe’s second-largest economy after Germany. Just yesterday the Bank of England had revised its growth forecast to beyond 2.7 percent. It had also indicated that inflation would stay within the 2 percent target for the next two years. House prices, meanwhile have increased for a third straight month in January.