British household spending falls

London: British household spending declined in 2009 from a year earlier as the economy experienced its worst recession since World War II.

Average weekly expenditure per household, adjusted for changes in consumer prices, dropped to £452.20 (€529.42) from £467.30 in 2008, the Office for National Statistics said in London. On an unadjusted basis, spending fell to £455, the first drop since comparable data began in 2001-2002.

Before 2006, the figures were measured on a fiscal-year basis.