This is according to Nationwide’s Consumer Confidence Index. Faith in the present situation rose slightly during June, with the Present Situation Index the only one to see an increase over the month, albeit slight. The Expectations and Spending Index both fell back in June reaching their lowest levels since May 2009 and January 2009 respectively.
There was a small fall in consumers' optimism towards the housing market in June, with consumers expecting the value of their home to increase by 0.7% over the next six months. This is a decrease of three tenths of a percentage point from May's figure.
Commenting, Martin Gahbauer, Nationwide's chief economist, said: "The downward trend that we have seen in recent months extended into June as consumers continued to express caution towards the future situation. With the emergency Budget taking place late in the month, this lack of optimism may have been a product of consumers hypothesizing over how the new Chancellor would address the UK's budget deficit.
“It will not be until July's results, however, that we could potentially see what impact the Chancellor's package of austerity measures has had on confidence. With the coalition government now established and greater clarity about future fiscal plans, it may be that we begin to see confidence stabilise somewhat in the coming months following a period of political uncertainty.”
