Fieldwork conducted on 5 – 8 May
2026
According to BRC-Opinium data, consumer expectations
over the next three months of:
-
The state of the economy improved at -48 in
May, up from -53 in April.
-
Their personal financial situation improved to
-16 in May, up from -21 in April.
-
Their personal spending on retail rose to +7
in May, up from +5 in April.
-
Their personal spending overall remained at
+15 in May, the same as in April.
-
Their personal saving remained at -8 in May,
the same as in April.
The proportion of people concerned that conflict in the
Middle East could…
-
Increase the price of food rose to 82% in May,
up from 80% in April.
-
Increase the price of non-food rose to 74% in
May, up from 73% in April.
-
Increase energy bills rose to 83% in May, up
from 81% in April.
Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive of the British Retail
Consortium, said:
“Consumer confidence, while firmly negative, saw a slight lift in
May following signs of de-escalation in the Middle East. Younger
consumers drove this improvement in expectations for the economy
and household finances, helped by rising real wages among this
generation. But the outlook remains fragile: inflation is set to
rise, and more than four in five people expect food prices to
climb.”
“If Government wants to keep consumer confidence heading in the
right direction, it must now make a choice: act now, or let these
inflationary pressures spiral, pushing up prices for households.
Energy prices are pushing up costs for retailers and their supply
chains, with the government's energy taxes and levies making up
as much as 65% of business bills. Cutting these charges is the
fastest way to ease inflation and support consumer confidence.
Delay will only make the next cost of living squeeze harder for
households.”
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-
Data collection began in March 2024 – and all records are since
then.
The BRC sent this release to our "Monitors" and "General
Retail" media list. To check/update what media lists you are on,
please contact us below.
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?
If you would like the results of the questions by Gender,
Generation, Location, Working status, or Income, please contact
the Press Office. Generations are defined as: Gen Z (18-29),
Millennial (30-45), Gen X (46-61), Boomer (62-80).
This monitor was started in March 2024, and records are from this
date.
