But less so than previously seen in April and May at least
Markit's latest release for the UK household finance index shows that consumers remain rather pessimistic about their finances in June, but at least there is some improvement relative to conditions seen back in April and May.
The headline reading rose from 37.8 in May to 40.7 in June but remains below its pre-coronavirus average of just under 45.0.
Of note, financial well-being expectations and job security perceptions continued to show signs of improvement but the latter remains extremely depressed as seen below:
I reckon this helps to paint more of a better picture of sentiment on the ground than what the PMI readings tomorrow will offer us, but nonetheless the importance of those releases to investors still largely overrides ones such as this.
Markit notes that:
"It is reassuring to see the UK Household Finance Index rebounding in June, as it suggests that the financial hardship endured during the height of the lockdown is easing. However, it appears that households are still faced with a number of difficulties which will hold back a broad-based economic recovery."Job security perceptions are still at extreme levels of pessimism, and the data here suggest there has been little pickup. This isn't surprising given that large parts of the UK economy remain shuttered, but such negativity towards employment status is likely to generate risk aversion in consumption habits, which will undermine the recovery."Incomes from employment were also in deep contraction territory during June. Key to the economy returning to pre-COVID-19 levels of economic output as quick as possible will be strong demand, which will encourage robust business activity and employment growth. If households are fearful for their job security and their incomes are falling, the UK's path of recovery could be a slow one."
