Consumer confidence in the future of the UK economy plummeted by 13 points to -56 during February and March, according to the Which? Consumer Insight Tracker. Two-thirds of UK adults said they expect the economy to worsen over the next 12 months, while just 12% think it will improve, a Which? survey found. Sue Davies, head of consumer protection policy for Which?, described the situation in a press release, noting a concerning shift in consumer sentiment as households face rising prices and global instability.
Around half of households are being forced to make at least one adjustment to ease financial pressure, a Which? survey indicates. A quarter of households admit to regularly dipping into emergency savings to bridge the gap between income and rising cost of essentials, according to the same survey. Confidence in the future of household finances has hit its lowest level since April last year, falling five points this month to -15, Which? reported.
Additional indicators show GfK's consumer confidence index dropped two points to -21 this month, while its major purchase index fell four points to minus 18, one point lower than last year. Some survey respondents said their concerns about future financial situation were linked to the conflict in the Middle East and its impact on fuel prices, according to Which? survey respondents.
Buying second-hand has been the first choice for one in 10 consumers when purchasing items other than food so far this year, a KPMG survey found. Eight percent of people of all ages report using reselling sites as their main way of buying non-grocery goods so far in 2026, rising to 15% of those aged 18 to 24, according to the same survey. Based on personal income, those earning between £30,000 and £35,000 have bought the most using resale platforms this year, KPMG reported. Linda Ellett, head of consumer and retail for KPMG UK, stated in a press release that the growth of consumer-to-consumer selling platform use is shaking up the UK retail landscape.
A third of people say they have sold an item via a reselling site this year, averaging five items across all age groups, a KPMG survey shows. Those earning between £35,000 and £40,000 say they have sold the most items, on average, according to the survey. A fifth of people have yet to sell an item on reselling sites this year, but plan to do so at some point, KPMG reported.
More than half of young adults say they feel less financially secure than they had expected to be by this point in their lives, an Intuit Credit Karma survey found. Fifty-one percent of Gen Z adults aged 18 to 29 said they feel less financially secure than expected, as did 53% of Millennials aged 30 to 45, according to the survey. Half of Gen X adults aged 46 to 61 had expected to feel more financially secure by now, as did around a third of Baby Boomers aged 62 to 80, Intuit Credit Karma reported. A fifth of people aged 81 and over who were surveyed also felt less financially secure than expected, the survey indicates.
Nearly two-thirds of Millennials said they had made at least one purchase in the past year shaped by how they feel about ageing and where they are in life, an Intuit Credit Karma survey shows. The average annual spend on purchases shaped by feelings about getting older was £1,888 for Millennials, according to the survey. Two-fifths of Millennials said that big purchases are more about helping them 'reset' than treating themselves, Intuit Credit Karma reported. More than half of Millennials have bought items to feel more confident, and 40% to feel more in control, the survey found. Nearly a third of Millennials said they tend to make big purchases when feeling stressed, and 37% have spent extravagantly due to feeling 'stuck' or burned out, according to the survey. Akansha Nath, general manager (international) at Intuit Credit Karma, explained in a press release that many Millennials feel they are not where they expected to be financially, which translates into spending, often on credit, during stressful times.