Coronavirus, Bad Weather Impact British Consumers, Businesses

A recent survey by Barclaycard indicates that over 25% of British consumers avoided shopping sprees and visits to commercial locations due to bad weather and the fear of coronavirus. Barclaycard’s consumer spending index gained by 2.2% during February, lower than the 3.9% gain seen in the previous month.

According to the survey, 53% of consumers put off their shopping plans due to stormy weather while 28% stayed indoors owing to the threat of coronavirus. On the positive side, consumers ended up spending more on digital entertain and food takeaway services.

The dip in consumer spending was seen in a recent survey by the BRC as well, with only a 0.1% rise in spending in February vs. the 0.4% rise seen in January. Meanhile, fears of the coronavirus have not only impacted consumers but also businesses, with business confidence declining to the lowest level in six months, according to a survey by IoD.

Over 50% of the participants indicated that they were quite pessimistic or very pessimistic about the economy over the next year. 20% of companies surveyed stated that the coronavirus outbreak would pose a high to severe level of threat to their businesses.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR See More
Arslan Butt
Index & Commodity Analyst
Arslan Butt serves as the Lead Commodities and Indices Analyst, bringing a wealth of expertise to the field. With an MBA in Behavioral Finance and active progress towards a Ph.D., Arslan possesses a deep understanding of market dynamics.His professional journey includes a significant role as a senior analyst at a leading brokerage firm, complementing his extensive experience as a market analyst and day trader. Adept in educating others, Arslan has a commendable track record as an instructor and public speaker.His incisive analyses, particularly within the realms of cryptocurrency and forex markets, are showcased across esteemed financial publications such as ForexCrunch, InsideBitcoins, and EconomyWatch, solidifying his reputation in the financial community.
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