In the midst of economic uncertainty and the threat of a recession in the wake of the EU Referendum, shoppers initially brushed off any concerns of lower incomes and continued to spend according to a report from Barclaycard.
Data collected by Barclaycard acquired by monitoring the spending patterns through credit and debit cards, showed in the aftermath of Britain’s decision to leave the EU, consumer spending had grown by 2.14%.
The data shows that there was a significant difference between spending in the weeks before and after the vote as spending on sectors such as entertainment increased by 10%, while pubs recorded a rise of 12.1% on top of a growth of 12.7% in June as the start of the 2016 EURO’S came into full swing.
However, the fear of economic uncertainty was evident in traditional peaks in spending at the end of the month due to payday packets, as spending in pubs and restaurants declined by 0.44% and 0.46%.
The report proposes that consumers were taking a ‘cautious mind-set around discretionary spending’ in the wake of Britain’s decision to leave the EU.
Despite these figures showing that the fear of economic uncertainly was starting to settle in the minds of consumers, two separate surveys conducted by Barclaycard suggest otherwise.
Surveys taken in June immediately after the result and in early July show that consumer confidence in household finances is increasing. In June, out of 1,700 consumers, 39% believed their finances will not be impacted by Brexit while Results from July’s survey show that this figure increased to 52%.
The results in the report show that despite concerns of an economic crisis, consumers within Barclaycard remain confident in Britain’s ability to sustain a growing economy
12/07/2016