Consumer confidence nudged up in May as Brits grew more optimistic over their personal finances and the wider economy, a new survey by GfK has found.
The GfK consumer confidence index increased three points to minus 20, recovering from April when it hit the lowest level in over a year.
All five key indicators including personal finance, savings, and general economic situation saw an improvement.
This included a bump in consumers’ willingness to spend on big-ticket items such as furniture and electrical goods.
“Have consumers taken comfort from the Bank of England’s 8 May quarter-point base-rate cut?” asked Neil Bellamy, consumer insights director at GfK.
”And have they breathed a tiny sigh of relief since April when the sudden turbulence of the Trump tariffs was prompting dire warnings of economic damage and a return to inflation?”
“Those dangers – especially the issue of inflation – have not disappeared, but the consumer mood in the UK does appear to have improved a little.”
It is the second index to register a rise in confidence this week after a BRC-Opinium survey found a boost in the public mood. It attributed this largely to improvements in the UK economy and easing tensions in the US-China trade war.
Official data from the Office for National Statistics this month showed UK’s growth domestic product rose 0.7% in the first quarter, better than expected.
The BRC also said trade deals with the US and the EU were likely filtering through to confidence levels. “Only weeks ago, consumers were facing uncertainty arising from President Trump’s announcement of eye-watering tariffs on many countries,” said Helen Dickinson, CEO of the BRC.
“Fast-forward to today, the UK has trade deals with some of the world’s largest economies.”
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