Are UK consumers finally giving up their last treat?
During the worldwide recession which was brought on by the credit crunch and the resulting money markets problems many consumers in the UK still found funding for their annual holidays. Even when unemployment was rising up and budgets were being stretched to the limit it seemed that UK consumers could always find money for a week or two overseas. However, it looks as though consumers in the UK have finally bitten the bullet!
This week we saw market leaders Thomas Cook and Tui Travel suggesting that there is a softening in demand in the holiday market with many challenges lying ahead. It is easy to forget that this is a sector which has been decimated by the increase in fuel costs as well as the volcanic ash cloud which ruined business for many weeks just a short time ago. It will be interesting to see how quickly demand for UK holidays improves as this could be one of the primary indicators that consumer confidence is turning.
In the meantime it looks as though increased fears of unemployment, tighter and tighter budgets and concerns about the UK property market are most certainly beginning to take their toll.
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