Visa, reports household spending fell by 1.2% y/y in January in Britain

  • spending in shops down by 4%
  • fall in car salesSales in hotels and restaurants, hair salons and sellers of beauty products improved

"Consumer spending entered the new year on a downbeat note, falling for the eighth time in the past nine months, as Britons continued to cut back on spending," Visa's chief commercial officer, Mark Antipof, said.

Annabel Fiddes, an economist at financial data firm IHS Markit which produces the survey for Visa, said concerns about Brexit were weighing on consumer confidence. But spending could pick up later this year as inflation is expected to fall back while wages rise more quickly, she added.

Via Reuters

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  • Visa debit and credit cards are used for a third of payments in Britain
  • Visa's data is based on card spending, adjusted for inflation, the number of cards in circulation and a long-term fall in the use of cash