There was some scepticism about the weather explanation for the poor January trade figures but it appears to have been true. February's deficit narrowed sharply to £2.1 billion (goods and services) from £3.9 billion (marginally revised up from £3.8 billion) in January. Exports looked particularly good, up 6.3% on the month, while imports fell by 1.4%. More here.

Meanwhile, domestic demand looked reasonably robust in March, with the British Retail Consortium reporting a 4.4% rise in like-for-like sales compared with a year earlier. Retailers will always look a gift horse in the mouth, so the BRC attributes it all to the timing of Easter. More here.