Consumer confidence improved marginally in February but will Hippy confidence shine through?

Hurray! Retail Week report that GfK NOP's Consumer Confidence Index rose by two points month on month to -35, (but is still 18 points down year on year) and that the climate for big-ticket spending improved as the major purchases measure rose for a fourth consecutive month to stand at -24, (but this too is still five points down year on year). Not surprisingly, the index measuring whether "now is a good time to save" dropped seven points to -25 and is 53 points down on February 2008. All in all the improvement reflected greater confidence in the economic outlook for the next 12 months and in personal household finances over the same period. Rachael Joy of GfK NOP's consumer confidence team is reported to have said: "Consumer confidence remains very fragile, although it rose slightly from its January figure." She said the uplift in consumers' views of their personal circumstances and the economy generally "suggests a growing number of consumers believe things will be better this time next year". It may sound a little hippy, and I’m not sure whether that is on trend or off this season, but we in this office believe that with a decent Summer, and maybe even an early one at that, these percentage point positions will improve even further. Two poor Summers have left us ripe to feel the full force and brunt of a recession but with a good dose of Vitamin D let’s hope that it’s a tonic in the right direction. Either way, by the Summers end we can be sure that our darker complexions will either be a tan or bruising!