BRC figures show inflation is easing, but are they?

Today’s report from the British Retail Consortium shows a fall in price inflation from 8.4% to 7.6%. The slowing of shop price increases, the first for two years, gives hope for retailers and consumers alike. Yet, there isn’t much breathing room. We’ can see the real impacts of international events on retailers, such as Russia’s decision to terminate the Black Sea grain deal that will see wheat and corn prices rise.

It therefore comes as no surprise that imported and refined goods are still on an upward trend, especially with longer buying cycles and ongoing supply chain pressures. We’ll likely see a lag effect on costs.

With consumers now expecting a continued decline in inflationary rates pressure, retailers need to manage price increases carefully and even reduce prices to below their current levels. With long buying cycles and complex demand forecasts to manage, now more than ever retailers need real-time accurate data aggregated from across their organisations and from other relevant sources in order to enable fast decision making and to optimise demand forecasting and buying processes.

Consumers are more than happy to shop around for the best prices, so retailers need to continue innovating and delivering cost optimisation to beat the competition.