Coronavirus (COVID-19) roundup: 19 June 2020

ONS have published the latest data on retail sales and public sector borrowing.

They have also published analysis of deaths involving COVID-19 by religious group, ethnic group and disability status (covering the period 2 March to 15 May 2020).

Some of the main points include:

• Borrowing in May 2020 was estimated to be £55.2 billion, roughly nine times more than in May 2019 (tax receipts and National Insurance contributions were only two-thirds of those collected in May 2019, while central government spending increased by half over the same period) 

• UK public sector debt was 100.9% of GDP at the end of May 2020, the first time that debt as a percentage of GDP has exceeded 100% since the financial year ending March 1963

• Retail sales volumes rebounded in May 2020 with an increase of 12.0% on April, although they remained 13.1% down compared with February

• When standardised for age, the Muslim religious group had the highest COVID-19 mortality rates at 198.9 deaths per 100,000 males and 98.2 deaths per 100,000 females

• Males from a Black ethnic background had a higher age-standardised mortality rate of death involving COVID-19 than those from other ethnic backgrounds (2.9 times greater than that of White males)

• Disabled females “limited a lot” died from COVID-19 related deaths in England and Wales at almost four times the rate of females who were not disabled

Read the ONS roundup