Confidence down but some rays of hope

Consumer confidence fell in December, despite a 0.25 percentage point cut to the base rate of interest.

According to the Nationwide Consumer Confidence Index, Britons remain anxious about the economy, plunging the confidence level to a low not seen since February 2007.

However, in the long-term, consumers seem slightly more hopeful, with the Expectations Index (looking six months ahead) remaining constant in December.

In addition, the Spending Index climbed five points, revealing that Britons are becoming more confident about spending their hard-earned cash.

Employment does not appear to be an issue for most consumers, with only 24 per cent of those polled believing that there will be fewer available jobs in six months' time.

This figure has fallen drastically on the 36 per cent who felt the same 12 months ago.

Further to this, 88 per cent of those questioned believe that their income will rise or remain constant in the next six months.

Related Articles