Consumer confidence down in October
Consumer confidence slipped in October as people become more concerned about the economy.
The data from GfK’s longstanding Consumer Confidence Index reveals that the overall index score fell by one point to -10.
Joe Staton, head of market dynamics at GfK, said: “It’s no surprise that the Overall Index Score continues to bump along in negative territory this month. As concerns about the wider economic prospects for the UK economy dampen our outlook, consumers are showing no real ‘get-up-and-go’.”
The measure for the forecast for personal finances over the next 12 months remained the same as last month at -4 but the measure for expectations for the general economic situation over the same period decreased by two points to -26.
Meanwhile, the major purchase index rose by two points to 3 but Staton warned that this was not necessarily good news.
He added: “Our enthusiasm for spending, as witnessed by the uptick in the major purchase index, is more worrying than reassuring. Surging credit card use is fuelling spending at the expense of our appetite for saving, which is growing at the slowest rate since the start of the 2008/2009 financial crisis.”
Looking ahead to Christmas, he said: “We are now entering the crucial Christmas trading season and it will be a testing time for retailers and consumers alike. Will consumers carry on shopping or start to cut back in the face of mounting pressure on our pockets?”
