GfK's latest Consumer Confidence Barometer, powered by the Nuremberg Institute for Market Decisions (NIM), reveals a notable decline in UK consumer sentiment this April. The Overall Index Score dropped by four points to -23, with all five core measures showing negative movement compared to March.
Neil Bellamy, Consumer Insights Director at GfK, a NielsenIQ (NIQ) company, commented:
'Headline confidence is down four points in April, led by two sharp drops in our economic measures. There's an eight-point fall from -29 to -37 in how people see the wider economy in the coming year, and a five-point dip for the past year's economic performance. The future indicator on personal finances has also slipped badly, dropping four points to -3.'
The results reflect the growing strain on UK households, which are contending with multiple cost pressures introduced this month. These include hikes in utilities, council tax, stamp duty, and road tax. Compounding this are fears that new tariffs imposed by former US President Donald Trump could trigger a fresh surge in inflation.
Bellamy warned: 'There are good reasons for this downturn. Consumers have not only been grappling with multiple April cost increases in the form of utilities, council tax, stamp duty, and road tax, but they are also hearing dire warnings of renewed high inflation on the back of the Trump Tariffs. The inflation rate eased in March, but are we now on the verge of another round of rapidly increasing prices? If so, consumer confidence is likely to collapse and the broad gains seen since the disastrous September 2022 minibudget, when confidence hit a record low of -49, could quickly be eroded.'
April 2025 Consumer Confidence Overview:
- Personal Finances (Past 12 Months): Down one point to -10. Still an improvement of one point from April 2024.
- Personal Finances (Next 12 Months): Down four points to -3, five points worse year-on-year.
- General Economic Situation (Past 12 Months): Down five points to -47, six points lower than April 2024.
- General Economic Situation (Next 12 Months): Dropped sharply by eight points to -37, a 16-point year-on-year decline.
- Major Purchase Index: Down two points to -19, but six points better than a year ago.
- Savings Index: Up five points to +30, a four-point improvement from April 2024.
The data, gathered from 2,002 UK adults aged 16+ between 1–14 April 2025, is subject to an estimated margin of error of ±2%. Quotas were imposed to ensure national representation by age, sex, region, and social class.
The GfK Consumer Confidence Barometer has been a monthly fixture since 1974, offering trusted insights into consumer sentiment across the UK's economic cycles. Since October 2023, it has been published jointly by GfK and NIM.
More information:
Nielsen IQ
www.nielseniq.com