Largely a result of the weaker pound pushing up import costs, inflation has outstripped growth in wages, squeezing household incomes. Lloyds said people were also less confident about the UK’s financial situation, with 69% feeling negative, up from 67% in June and 60% in July 2016. Despite worries over the economy, people remain relatively upbeat about their own circumstances, with 64% feeling positive about their personal financial situation in July, unchanged from June. It showed that the year-on-year growth in consumers’ spending on essentials fell to 2% in from from 3% in June. Fuel spend rose by 5%, the lowest rate of growth since last October, and down from a peak of 13% in April.

Source: The Guardian September 03, 2017 22:52 UTC