Households caught in doldrums as unhealthy climate and rising fears over debt dampen spending
Rising worries over debt are dampening households’ appetite to spend, a report found.
The dismal findings of a monthly poll from financial firm S&P Global revealed a further deterioration in confidence in February.
It represents the latest blow to Labour’s claims that the economy is set to turn a corner this year and comes days after official figures showed growth slowed to a crawl at the end of last year.
The S&P Global UK consumer sentiment index, based on a panel of 1,500 households, gave a reading of 44.8 for February, on a scale where the 50-mark separates improvement from deterioration.
The headline reading was slightly improved on January’s 44.6 but remains much weaker than it has been for much of the past two years.
Maryam Baluch at S&P Global Market Intelligence said households were ‘growing increasingly worried about debt in particular’.
A separate report yesterday from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development showed Labour’s new Employment Rights Act was putting a ‘handbrake’ on jobs.
Debt worries: The S&P Global UK consumer sentiment index gave a reading of 44.8 for February, on a scale where the 50-mark separates improvement from deterioration
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