Faint glimmer of light in consumer confidence crisis
June 24, 2022
Consumer confidence hit a record low in June with a "dark consumer mood" say analysts – but the decline in major purchases intentions for furniture and flooring has finally levelled out for the first time in weeks.
The Overall Index Score in GfK's authoritative retail report decreased one point to -41 in June, setting a new record low at minus 41.
But after a steady decline in the GfK Major Purchase Index, the statistics finally stopped falling and stabilised, albeit at minus 53 – 30 points lower than this time last year.
Joe Staton, Client Strategy Director, GfK says: “With prices rising faster than wages, and the prospect of strikes and spiralling inflation causing a summer of discontent, many will be surprised that the index has not dropped further. The consumer mood is currently darker than in the early stages of the Covid pandemic, the result of the 2016 Brexit referendum, and even the shock of the 2008 global financial crisis, and now there’s talk of a looming recession.
"One thing is for sure, Britain faces a stark new economic reality and history shows that consumers will not hesitate to retrench and tighten their purse strings when the going gets tough,” he said.
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