By Ian McConnell
UK consumer sentiment is less bleak this month than in March amid the developing coronavirus crisis, a survey shows, with the greatest improvement in confidence among under-25s.
PricewaterhouseCoopers cited the roll-out of the UK Government’s scheme to support the incomes of furloughed workers as one likely factor in its UK consumer confidence index improving from -26 in March to -14 in April. March saw the steepest fall in the index since the survey began in 2008.
The accountancy firm said, although overall consumer sentiment since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic had been lower than at any point since 2013, “confidence is still higher than during the recession of 2008/09 and the following period of austerity, giving some hope for a rebound in consumer spending once lockdown measures are lifted”.
It noted the April survey period had included the Easter weekend, by which time UK consumers had experienced more than a fortnight of “full lockdown measures including the closure of all but essential retail outlets”. However, it observed multiple Government relief schemes had provided “more certainty and employment security for many”.
People are asked whether, in terms of disposable income , they expect their household to be better or worse off in 12 months’ time. The confidence index is calculated by subtracting the percentage expecting to be worse off from the proportion projecting they will be better off.
Noting improved confidence among under-25s, PwC said: “With this group most likely to work in lower-paid, less-secure roles, their sentiment may have been driven, to some extent, by the rollout and implementation of the Government furlough scheme, which had only just been announced when March’s survey was undertaken.”
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