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The warm weather, together with rising consumer confidence, resulted in a notable increase in the number of people eating and drinking out in April, the latest Barclaycard Consumer Spending Report has revealed.
Last month, consumer spending on eating and drinking in pubs increased by 8% compared with the same period last year. Restaurant spending also grew by 13%; however, average transaction value dropped by 6.8% and this is attributed to the fact that consumers are becoming more 'savvy' and cost-conscious with their meal choices, despite eating out more regularly.
According to the report, travel spend was up by a significant 6.8% last month compared with April 2014. This increase could be an indication of the continuing popularity of the staycation, where consumers choose to spend their holidays in their home country instead of traveling abroad. This, of course, is great news for the hospitality industry.
Overall, consumer spending grew by 4.5% in April, which is the biggest monthly rise in terms of real growth recorded since Barclaycard started its regular analysis back in October 2011. It was feared that the General Election would reduce consumer spend; however it actually had very little effect as consumers decided to wait for the election results first.
Managing Director at Barclaycard, Chris Wood, commented that "great weather, favourable economic conditions and the Easter holidays have culminated in a bumper month for consumer spending in April.
"Low inflationary pressure is helping consumers to loosen the purse on non-essential spending in particular, with many taking the opportunity to make the most of an unseasonably fine British springtime."
