Retail helps drive Britain’s hidden productivity boom

Britain’s retail sector is among the industries driving a surprise rebound in productivity that may have been masked by unreliable official employment data.
New analysis from the Resolution Foundation suggests UK productivity has grown by an average of 1.1 per cent a year over the two years to June 2026, marking a sharp turnaround from the 0.7 per cent annual decline recorded during the previous two years.
Crucially for retailers, the improvement appears to be broad-based rather than conce