5 March 2008
New figures show that consumer confidence has slipped by three points, according to Nationwide.
Its Consumer Confidence index fell to 78 points in February and was caused by perceptions of the current economic situation, the lender said.
In addition, Nationwide predicted there would not be a change in the base rate when the Bank of England meets this month.
Figures were also published for the Present Situation (PS), Expectations and Spending indices, with PS experiencing the biggest drop from 83 to 76.
Expectations remained unchanged and Spending fell by four points, which could mean people are reigning in finances and spending less from disposable income and on their credit cards.
Senior economist Martin Gahbauer said: "The continued downward trend in consumer confidence is to be expected given the effect of higher food and fuel costs on people's pockets and the tightening of the availability of credit."
Recent research by GfK NOP suggested consumer confidence is at a 13-year low.
© 2008 Adfero Ltd
Content for the uSwitch.com market news service is provided by a third party, Adfero Ltd. Whilst uSwitch.com makes reasonable efforts to check the reliability of this content, uSwitch.com does not guarantee the accuracy thereof or endorse the views or opinions given by Adfero Ltd, unless expressly stated otherwise.