- Huw Hughes
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UK consumer confidence in October fell to its joint-lowest point in six
years amid continued Brexit uncertainty and ahead of the 12 December
general election.
GfK’s Consumer Confidence Index decreased two points to -14 in October
compared to -12 in September.
Joe Staton, client strategy director at GfK, said in a statement: “In
the face of continued Brexit uncertainty, the overall Index score fell to
-14 this month. Importantly, the ongoing machinations in Westminster appear
to be impacting how we view our personal financial situation for the coming
year, with a fall of -3 in this measure in October. Is this an early sign
of long-running weak economic confidence spreading to the way we view money
matters?”
Staton said that consumers’ deteriorating sentiment regarding personal
finance affairs was worrying as strong consumer spending was a main driver
of economic growth since the referendum took place back in 2016.
He added: “Does reduced confidence in personal finances for the year
ahead pose a risk to the wider economy? Nobody wants to see consumer
spending reduce and let’s hope it doesn’t happen. But Brexit’s continuing
uncertainty and the spectre of a general election is not helpful. People
can only feel confident if they believe the external environment is stable,
yet consumers are witnessing too many Brexit shifts and surprises, too many
Brexit timelines and counter proposals to justify any longer-term
confidence. The big black Brexit cloud is refusing to shift.”
Photo credit: Photo credit: FashionUnited / GfK
