Consumer confidence down two points in June
Consumer confidence in the UK has fallen in June as consumers feel less optimistic about the economy in the run-up to Brexit.
GfK’s long-running Consumer Confidence Index decreased by two points to -9 in the month following a decline across all the measures used in compiling the index.
Joe Staton, client strategy director at GfK, said: “The overall index score has now registered at zero or negative for 30 months. Contrast that with 2015 – when there was a full year of positive numbers. The trend since those 2015 figures has been resolutely downwards and it’s difficult to see the direction changing in the run-up to the UK leaving the European Union in March 2019.”
The measure for expectations for the general economic situation over the next 12 months decreased by four points to -25 in June while the measure for the forecast for personal finances over the same period dropped by two points to 6.
Never Miss a Retail Update!Meanwhile, the major purchase index fell by one point to 0, which is one point lower than June 2017.
Staton added: “There is little comfort in the one-point drop to zero in the major purchase index. Shoppers are holding on to their cash and consumers in general seem set on their path of self-imposed austerity.”
