Forexpros – The U.K.’s Nationwide consumer confidence index deteriorated for the fourth consecutive month in October, hovering close to the all-time low, industry data showed on Thursday.
In a report, the Nationwide Building Society said that its consumer confidence index fell by 9.0 points to a seasonally adjusted 36.0, down from September’s reading of 45.0.
Analysts had expected the Nationwide consumer confidence index to improve by 1.0 point to 46.0 in October.
The main index now stands just four points above its all time low seen in February 2011.
The Spending Index fell by two points but remains some way above its all time lows, despite the challenging economic environment.
Economic growth is expected to remain weak over the next six months, however signs that policymakers are taking action, with the Bank of England expanding its asset purchase scheme in October, may provide some support for confidence going forward.
Commenting on the report, Robert Gardner, Nationwide’s chief economist, said, “These relatively downbeat findings are understandable given the challenging economic backdrop. The economy has hardly grown in 2011 and pressure has continued to mount on household budgets.”
Following the release of the data, the pound was fractionally higher against the U.S. dollar, with GBP/USD easing up 0.07% to trade at 1.5741.
Meanwhile, European stock markets were down after the open. The FTSE 100 fell 0.45%, the EURO STOXX 50 shed 0.35%, France’s CAC 40 slipped 0.3%, while Germany’s DAX dropped 0.55%.
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