Economy still short of spending boom

THE Irish economy is still short of hitting a fully-fledged spending boom because of fears for the global economy, the latest gauge of consumer sentiment indicates.

The overall IIB Bank/ESRI Consumer Sentiment Index improved in June. The June reading of 99.6 compares to a figure of 97.4 in May.

IIB bank chief economist Austin Hughes said that, while Irish consumers are sufficiently optimistic about the future to increase borrowing in order to purchase property, buy new cars, book holidays and take advantage of summer sale bargains, these trends also rely heavily on the cheap price and ready availability of credit.