2 minute read
Cost of Living
by 55 North
Households cut back as spare cash falls £135 per month
Research shows 63.4% of households are setting strict limits on the amount they spend on food shops and 29.6% of households expect to if living costs continue to rise.
Around twothirds of households are setting strict limits on the amount they spend on their weekly food shops and three-quarters are set to cut back spending on takeaways, according to new insight from Retail Economics and HyperJar.
The Cost of Living Tracker shows the average household continues to face double-digit declines in discretionary income – seeing falls of 12.1% in June compared with the same month last year, leaving them with £135 less to spend on non-essential items.
Major grocers including Asda have increasingly seen consumers set payment limits at checkout as take-home pay erodes.
Two-thirds (63.4%) of households are setting strict limits on the amount they spend on food shops because of rising living costs and 29.6% of households expect they will start having to if living costs continue to rise.
As more than nine-in-10 households look to reduce discretionary spending, 74.1% are set to cut back spending on takeaways. Eating out is also set to feel the brunt of spending reductions going forward, with more than 70% of households likely to cut back on this area.
Richard Lim, Chief Executive of Retail Economics, said: “The amount of spare cash available for families continues to vanish at an astonishing rate – especially for the most vulnerable in society.
“Many households have no choice but cut back across all areas of their discretionary spending as their financial positions are plunged into the red. For others, the bleaker economic outlook has encouraged a much more cautious approach to spending, and they are trading down and delaying across many discretionary areas.
“The challenge for the next Conservative leader is implementing policies that will have a significant impact on consumer sentiment. Around two-thirds of households believe that potential tax cuts would be swallowed up straight away by rising food and utility costs.”
