UK consumers have become more gloomy in January, according to new data, but the January blues were more widespread for older people than those aged under 30.
Consumers' expectations about their personal financial situation, personal spending and the state of the economy over the next three months all worsened, a survey on consumer expectations from the British Retail Consortium carried out by Opinium.
Views of personal finances over the next three months dropped to a balance of -4 in January, down from -3 in December, with three-month views of the state of the economy worsened to -34 in January, down from -27 in December.
Expectations of personal spending on retail fell to -9 from -3, and on personal spending overall dropped to +4 from +11.
BRC chief Helen Dickinson said: "As the government warns of tough times ahead, it is little surprise that the public have caught the January blues."
She notes that concerns most pronounced among older generations, with two-thirds of Boomers (ie those aged between 60 and 80) expecting things to get worse.
Only Gen Z (roughly 18 to 30s) expect the economy to improve.
