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Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.Spending in UK pubs, bars and clubs almost tripled on the day of the Euro 2024 football final compared with the year before, a rare bright spot in July as consumer spending fell and retail sales growth registered only a modest rise.Payment transactions in pubs, bars and clubs were three times higher on Sunday July 14 than in 2023, up by 195.6 per cent, according to figures published on Tuesday by Barclays, which accounts for almost half of credit and debit card transactions nationwide. The surge in spending came after pub bosses had warned of patchy trade during the football tournament, in which England were beaten in the final by Spain, and as the sector saw an uplift of 4.9 per cent in July, the highest rate of growth since January. But it failed to offset a 0.3 per cent year-on-year decline in overall consumer card spending last month.The fall was a slight improvement on June, when card spending dropped by 0.6 per cent on an annual basis. Spending on non-essential items declined for the second consecutive month in July, contracting by 0.7 per cent. Almost half of consumers sought to cut back on discretionary spending, up slightly from the previous month, according to Barclays.Spending at food and drink specialists such as butchers and greengrocers rose by 3.5 per cent year on year in the month, the biggest uplift since January. Barclays put the increase down to Britons buying barbecue ingredients to cook at home on the handful of sunny days during a wet four weeks. Its data echoed separate figures from the British Retail Consortium, which showed modest sales growth for retailers in the four weeks to July 27. Total retail sales rose by 0.5 per cent year on year in the month, compared with growth of 1.5 per cent in the same period last year, according to the trade body. The reading was above the three-month average growth of 0.3 per cent but below the 12-month average growth of 1.4 per cent.Linda Ellett, UK head of consumer, retail and leisure at advisory firm KPMG, said summer staples such as beauty and gardening products had helped drive retail sales growth both online and in store but that the 0.5 per cent increase was probably “much less than retailers were hoping for at this key time of the year”. “A busy summer of televised sport has played a beneficial role in increasing TV, mobile and tablet sales over the last two months, but there’s little evidence of other big ticket purchases taking place,” she added. Jack Meaning, chief UK economist at Barclays, said that weather, sports events and concerts appeared to have led to seasonal spending fluctuations. But he added that with the Bank of England cutting interest rates for the first time in four years this month, “the bigger picture is that consumers are seeing their incomes and spending power rise and are becoming more confident in the overall economic outlook”.
