UK May consumer confidence comes in at -40 (April -38) - falls to its lowest on record

The records for UK consumer confidence go back to 1974. May 2022 has hit the lowest since the records began.

Comes in at -40, matched a record low hit in April 2020 as the coronavirus pandemic swept the country.

• from -38 in April
• inflation and rates both rising weighed

Added info via Reuters:

• Past readings this low have presaged recessions
• "Consumer confidence is now weaker than in the darkest days of the global banking crisis, the impact of Brexit on the economy, or the COVID shutdown," said Joe Staton, client strategy director at GfK. "Nothing on the economic horizon shows a reason for optimism any time soon," Staton said.
• Even recessions in the early 1980s and early 1990s - a time of double-digit interest rates and high unemployment - produced less pessimism than the current crisis which is playing out against the backdrop of the war in Ukraine.
• Separate data published by Lloyds Bank showed spending on energy by its customers rose by an annual 28% in April. The BoE forecasts inflation will top 10% later this year and investors expect more interest rate increases.