The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has warned that many consumers are showing signs of restricting their spending, with evidence of a New Year hangover this month.
According to the latest CBI Distributive Trades Survey, a balance of 22 per cent of retailers questioned reported a dip in sales in January. Orders were also found to be down on where they should be for the time of year, with a further decline anticipated for February.
“Shoppers have reined in spending across the board at the start of the New Year after taking advantage of early discounting last month, which boosted pre-Christmas sales,” said CBI chief economic adviser Ian McCafferty. “Consumers are still holding off particularly from buying big-ticket items like washing machines and fridges.”
The CBI noted that the overall performance of the retail sector in January had been mixed, with grocers reporting a slight increase in sales despite declines in household goods, DIY and department store sales.
Last week, figures from the Office for National Statistics revealed that the British economy had contracted by 0.2 per cent during the last quarter of 2011, adding to fears of a double-dip recession.
