Annual growth in consumer credit and debit card spending slowed to 2.8 percent in August from 4 percent in July, which the bank attributed to the continuation of rainy weather from the previous month.
Part of the slowdown also reflects lower inflation, in particular a 20 percent year-on-year decline in the cost of vehicle fuel, as spending on basics such as food and fuel grew by just 1.0 percent, the lowest rate since April 2020.
Spending on movie tickets rose 101 percent from the previous year, leading to a broader increase in spending on entertainment.
However, with consumer price inflation still at 6.8 percent in July – the highest level of any major economy – the data suggests that overall household consumption continues to decline in real terms.
While Barclays said the rainy weather weighed on consumer spending, separate figures from the British Retail Consortium showed on Tuesday that many shoppers had returned to stores after a slump in the retail sector in July.
The Bank of England has raised interest rates 14 times since December 2021, and financial markets expect another quarter-point increase to 5.5% this month, and then a final hike to 5.75% before the end of the year.
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