Households increasingly upbeat about long-term financial wellbeing - survey
By Abigail Townsend
Date: Monday 17 Jun 2019
(Sharecast News) - British households have become more confident about their longer-term financial health, despite ongoing concerns about their current position.
The headline IHS Markit Household Finance Index, which measures households' overall perceptions of financial wellbeing, was 43.8 in June. That was an improvement on May's 42.8, but still below 50.0; any reading below the neutral point of 50.0 indicates negative perceptions.
Although June's figure was broadly in line with the 2019 average, it also signalled a sharper degree of pessimism than seen throughout much of 2018.
However, looking further ahead, households were notably more upbeat. The Future Household Finance Index was 51.5 in June, compared to 49.2 in May, the first time since November that it has moved into positive territory.
IHS Markit said households had seen income from employment grow and were continuing to report rising activity at workplaces. However, job security perceptions were weak, remaining in negative territory for the eleventh successive month.
Joe Hayes, economist at IHS Markit, said: "The unclear path towards Brexit still lingers in the background, while uncertainty has been brought about by the end of Theresa May's tenure as prime minister.
"Nevertheless, robust growth in incomes was recorded, while living cost perceptions were little-changed from the preceding two months. If meaningful wage growth and a low and stable inflation environment can be sustained, this should support purchasing power for UK householders."
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