Consumers show renewed resilience as all measures reverse the drop seen in July
London, August 25, 2023 – GfK’s long-running Consumer Confidence Index increased five points to -25 in August. All five measures were up in comparison to last month’s announcement.
Joe Staton, Client Strategy Director GfK, says: “Against a backdrop of falling core inflation, higher interest rates and rising average weekly earnings, the Consumer Confidence Index has regained momentum this month with a welcome five-point improvement. Although the headline figure remains strongly negative at -25, hopes for our personal financial situation for the coming year are heading back towards positive territory, a metric that is key to indicating the future financial position of households. This renewed optimism can also be seen in the similar turnaround for our view on the general economic outlook for the next 12 months, and the eight-point advance in major purchase intentions is potentially better news for retailers as we move into autumn. However, while the financial pulse of the nation is still weak, these signs of optimism are welcome during this challenging time for consumers across the UK.”
UK Consumer Confidence Measures – August 2023
The Overall Index Score increased five points to -25 in August. All five measures were up in comparison to last month’s announcement.
Personal Financial Situation
The index measuring changes in personal finances during the last year is up five points at -15; this is 10 points better than August 2022.
The forecast for personal finances over the next 12 months increased four points to -3, which is 28 points higher than this time last year.
General Economic Situation
The measure for the general economic situation of the country during the last 12 months is up six points at -52; this is 16 points higher than in August 2022.
Expectations for the general economic situation over the next 12 months have increased by three points to -30; this is 30 points better than August 2022.
Major Purchase Index
The Major Purchase Index is up eight points to -24; this is 14 points higher than this month last year.
Savings Index
The Savings Index is up one point to +27; this is nine points higher than this time last year.
Notes to editor
Please source all information to GfK.
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- The UK Consumer Confidence Barometer is conducted by GfK.
- This month’s survey was conducted among a sample of 2,001 individuals aged 16+.
- Quotas are imposed on age, sex, region and social class to ensure the final sample is representative of the UK population.
- Interviewing was conducted between August 1st and August 10th 2023.
- The figures contained within the Consumer Confidence Barometer have an estimated margin of error of +/-2%.
- The Overall Index Score is calculated using underlying data that runs to two decimal points.
- Press release dates for the remainder of 2023 are: Sept 22nd; October 20th; November 24th; and December 15th.
- Any published material requires a reference to GfK e.g. ‘Research carried out by GfK’.
- This study has been running since 1974. Back data is available from 2006.
- The table below provides an overview of the questions asked to obtain the individual index measures:
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Personal Financial Situation (Q1/Q2) |
This index is based on the following questions to consumers: ‘How has the financial situation of your household changed over the last 12 months?’ ‘How do you expect the financial position of your household to change over the next 12 months?’ (a lot better – a little better – stay(ed) the same – a little worse – a lot worse) |
|
General Economic Situation (Q3/Q4) |
This index is based on the following questions to consumers: ‘How do you think the general economic situation in this country has changed over the last 12 months?’ ‘How do you expect the general economic situation in this country to develop over the next 12 months?’ (a lot better – a little better – stay(ed) the same – a little worse – a lot worse) |
|
Major Purchase Index (Q8) |
This index is based on the following question to consumers: ‘In view of the general economic situation, do you think now is the right time for people to make major purchases such as furniture or electrical goods?’ (right time – neither right nor wrong time – wrong time) |
|
Savings Index (Q10)
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This index is based on the following question to consumers: ‘In view of the general economic situation do you think now is?’ (a very good time to save – a fairly good time to save – not a good time to save – a very bad time to save) (Commented on but not included in the Index Score) |
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