The UK economy entered 2025 with cautious optimism, showing early signs of recovery after years of stagnation. Real GDP grew by 0.5% in February and 0.6% over the preceding three months, driven mainly by the services sector, particularly retail and wholesale. Forecasts suggest GDP growth could reach 1.7% in 2025, up from 0.8% in 2024, though global trade tensions -especially new US tariffs – pose significant risks. The IMF warns these tariffs could reduce US GDP by 1% and global GDP by 0.5% through 2026, with the UK vulnerable due to its reliance on global supply chains. A $1.4 trillion global economic loss is projected, with UK retail and wholesale facing slower exports, inventory delays, and volatile import prices.
Despite these challenges, retail and wholesale remain vital to the UK economy, employing 3.7 million people and contributing £112 billion in 2024. Retail alone supported 2.7 million jobs across over 320,000 businesses. Although the sector rebounded to pre-pandemic output by 2020, growth has since been subdued. Wholesale, often overlooked, plays a key role in supporting trade and supply chains.
Investment in IT has surged, with digital transformation reshaping operations. Retailers and wholesalers are adopting AI, automation, and omni-channel strategies to enhance efficiency and customer experience. AI is widely used for demand forecasting, inventory management, and personalised marketing. In wholesale, digital platforms and real-time logistics have improved responsiveness and reduced costs. However, R&D spending growth has slowed, indicating a focus on proven technologies over speculative innovation.
Looking ahead, the sector’s resilience and digital adaptability position it well to navigate economic uncertainty. Continued investment in technology is expected to drive productivity, strengthen supply chains, and support sustainable growth, even amid global trade disruptions and evolving consumer behaviour.
SHARE :
This Excel document is part of the company profiles PAC publishes every year at local, regional and worldwide level.
Event Date : March 26, 2025
This Excel document delivers market figures broken down by vertical sectors. Figures cover a seven-year time frame (results from the past two years ...
Event Date : January 23, 2026
This Excel document is part of the company profiles PAC publishes every year at local, regional and worldwide level.
Event Date : July 29, 2025
The retail industry in 2024 will be profoundly impacted by advances in generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) embedded into existing software and ...
Event Date : February 28, 2024
This Excel document positions and ranks the major IT services suppliers by revenue in Austria
Event Date : June 17, 2026
Cloud Ecosystem Services - Market Figures - France
Datamart June 18, 2026 NEW 
Cloud Platforms by Segments - Market Figures - France
Datamart June 18, 2026 NEW
Datamart June 18, 2026 NEW
Datamart June 18, 2026 HOT 
NEW
IT Services - Preliminary Vendor Rankings - Spain
Datamart June 17, 2026 NEW
Atos: Cause for Optimism, Despite the Headlines
Blog Post February 05, 2024
From AI Experimentation to Operational AI
Blog Post June 10, 2026
Top 10 IT Services providers in France: A Difficult 2025 Accelerating the Sector's Transformation
Blog Post June 05, 2026
Agentic AI Enterprise Transformation
Whitepaper & Trend Studies June 01, 2026
TCS SovereignSecure Cloud: A modular and pragmatic approach to Sovereign Cloud in Europe
Blog Post May 28, 2026
Model Selection Is A Strategic Governance Challenge
Blog Post May 28, 2026
