Consumer confidence in the doldrums, says BRC

BRC CONSUMER SENTIMENT MONITOR – August 2025

Fieldwork conducted on 5-8 August 2025

According to BRC-Opinium data, consumer expectations over the next three months of:

• The state of the economy improved slightly to -32 in August, up from -33 in July.
  
  
• Their personal financial situation improved slightly to -6 in August, up from -7 in July.

• Their personal spending on retail rose slightly to +4 in August, up from +3 in July.

• Their personal spending overall remained unchanged at +16 in August, the same as in July.

• Their personal saving rose to +2 in August, up from -3 in July.

Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive of the British Retail Consortium, said:
“While consumer confidence in the economy crept up this month, it remains 24 pts lower than a year ago, with older generations seeing the biggest falls. Full-time workers were far more optimistic than those working part-time, unemployed, or retirees, reflecting that they were also the only group who expected their financial position to improve in the next three months. With prices rising, and food inflation predicted to hit 6% by the end of the year, households are expected to spend more on retail goods in the coming months, with groceries showing the biggest increase.

“Rising food inflation will make it harder to lift consumer confidence out of the doldrums. Belief in the economy has stayed stubbornly below -30 for six of the last seven months, a far cry from the net positive sentiment in July 2024. Consumers see rising prices, gap-toothed high streets, and reports of large businesses falling into administration. Much rides on the Chancellor's plans for Retail, Hospitality and Leisure, and only a significant reduction in the business rates burden can bring about the levels of investment needed to reinvigorate Britain's high streets and town centres.”

Consumer expectations for the state of the economy over the next three months:

Consumer expectations for their personal financial situation over the next three months:

Consumer expectations of spending over the next three months by category:

Consumer NET expectations of spending over the next three months by category:

-ENDS-

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Methodology:

Fieldwork conducted by Opinium for the BRC. Sample included 2,000 UK adults and results have been weighted and assigned a net score. The better/worse figures in the graphs are rounded, while net scores are calculated from precise figures. Questions were:

• Over the next 3 months, do you expect your personal finances to get better or worse?
• Over the next 3 months, do you expect the state of the UK economy to get better or worse?
• What do you plan to do in relation to your spending over the next 3 months?
• Reflecting on your retail spend across different categories, overall do you expect to spend more or less on retail items over the next 3 months?
• What are your expectations for saving over the next 3 months?
• What are your expectations for spending on the following retail categories over the next three months compared to the previous 3 months?