According to a comprehensive report from Worldway Immigration: A survey released by market research firm GfK on June 27 shows that UK consumer confidence rose to 1 in June, marking the best performance in over nine years (since March 2005), as the British public becomes increasingly optimistic about a rapid economic recovery.
Specific data shows that the UK GfK Consumer Confidence Index for June was +1, the best performance in over nine years (since April 2005); the forecast was +2, compared to 0 in May.
The survey suggests that consumer spending will remain one of the driving forces behind the rapid recovery of the UK economy, as the confidence index for the UK economy over the next 12 months has risen to a more than 10-year high. However, the confidence index for personal financial situations over the next 12 months was the only sub-index in the GfK report to record a decline in June.
The survey data also suggests that another major source of UK economic growth—the real estate market—has cooled slightly over the past month.
Data firm Hometrack stated that UK house prices rose by 0.3% in June, compared to a 0.5% increase in May; furthermore, only about one-third of regions in England and Wales saw house price increases, down from 50% two months ago.
Richard Donnell, Director of Research at Hometrack, stated: "Over the past 18 months, latent demand has been flowing into the real estate market, which has put upward pressure on house prices. Currently, with housing demand unchanged in June, this trend appears to be losing momentum."
Headquartered in Nuremberg, Germany, the GfK Group has an 80-year history, currently employs over 5,000 full-time staff, and is one of the world's top five market research firms. This survey is an investigation into UK consumer sentiment regarding the economy and consumption prospects, used to reflect future consumption trends and economic outlooks.
Worldway Immigration Editor
