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Get your free copy09 January 2017, 06:19 AM
- Festive sales contributed to the strongest quarter for consumer spend since 2014, according to the Visa UK Consumer Spending Index
Expenditure was up 2.6 per cent in December on an annual basis. This was down slightly from November’s 3.1 per cent, but rounded-off the best quarter for two years. The final quarter of 2016 saw expenditure rising at an average annual rate of 2.8 per cent.
Kevin Jenkins, UK & Ireland managing director at Visa said, “Consumer spending continued to increase solidly in the run up to Christmas, rounding off the fastest growing quarter for two years. Average year-on-year growth for each month in Q4 2016 was 2.8 per cent, twice as high as the average rates for Q2 and Q3.
“Online retailers enjoyed strong sales over the whole Christmas period, while bricks and mortar retailers saw an improvement, after a disappointing dip in November, as consumers made a last minute dash for gifts on the high street.
“Food was, unsurprisingly, another sector which performed well, with spend up 2.9 per cent.”
