Word Cup fever and hot weather boosts consumer spending, rising 5.1% last month
Spending in pubs rose 33% on England’s debut World Cup match
Non-essential consumer spending rose 5.5% in June – the highest in more than 18 months
The Barclays Consumer Spending report, released today, shows that Brits have been spending more thanks to World Cup fever and the current warm weather.
Growth in consumer spending stayed at 5.1% in June – the same as May’s high levels, as Brits spent more in pubs, garden centres and on entertainment, such as cinema tickets and gigs.
Brits are also feeling more positive about their household finances, with 65% feeling confident, compared to 57% in May.
Laura Suter, personal finance analyst at AJ Bell, comments:
“These figures are encouraging, as the effects of the sunny weather and World Cup fever have boosted consumer spending. The data only takes into account the first England match, which led to a 33% boost to spending in pubs. This means we can expect July’s figures to be equally as buoyant as more people flocked to bars and pubs to watch the England games.
“People are also getting out and about in the warm weather, with spending on tickets, experiences, and cinema trips up 20% - entertainment spending is at the highest levels since July last year. Brits are eating out more too, with restaurant spending up almost 10% in the month.
“The figures may also been good news for local shops, with shoppers saying they want to support local communities in a bid to halt some of the closures on the high street. One in five plan to visit more independent shops, in a potential first sign of a pivot away from online shopping.
However, it is early days, as growth in online spending continues to outpace in-store purchases in key areas such as clothing, department stores, travel agents, furniture stores and supermarkets.”