While Theresa May tries to convince leaders and parliamentarians both home and away as the Brexit deadline approaches, a recent survey shows that British consumer confidence has fallen to its lowest level since the referendum result shocked the Nation in 2016, with households concerned about the outlook for the economy.
“The GfK consumer sentiment index fell to -13 in November from -10 in October, the lowest reading since December 2017 and below economists’ average forecast in a Reuters poll. The market research company published the data earlier than its planned release time of 0001 GMT on Friday after the news was released early by an industry publication.” – Reuters
This is in stark contrast to the bumper summer months that saw the British economy boosted as a consequence of England’s World Cup successes and the scorching summer that saw holidaymakers chose staycations over vacations.
In a week when the Bank of England warned of a recession if Britain leaves the EU with no deal, consumer borrowing growth was shown to be at its weakest levels for more than 3 years.
Nationwide are warning “the future outlook remains depressed by an uncertain economy and a squeeze on household budgets” but annual house price growth rose to 1.9 percent in November from 1.6 percent in October, a bigger pick-up than the average forecast in a Reuters poll of economists, while monthly growth was also stronger than expected at 0.3 percent.
So, what does this mean for the British economy – strap in, it could be a bumpy sleigh ride as make our way through the festive season, retailers could see unpredictable trading patterns as consumers await news of the vote on the 11th December.
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