Britons tightened their purse strings during the holiday season, according to Visa payment card data.
Overall consumer spending fell 1 percent year-on-year in December – the biggest fall since April 2018. Notably, spending had dropped 0.7 percent in November.
The slowdown in consumer spending is being associated with Brexit uncertainty and comes at a time when the British exporters feeling the heat of the Sino-US trade war.
Key quote (via Reuters)
“The sustained fall in expenditure throughout the fourth quarter of 2018 coincides with a marked drop in consumer confidence, as uncertainty around the UK’s impending exit from the EU continues to dampen sentiment,” said Annabel Fiddes, an economist at IHS Markit.
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