Consumer spending ‘driven by caution rather than shortage of cash’

CONSUMER spending will become sluggish in the coming months, the IIB Bank/ESRI Consumer Sentiment Index for February indicates.

The index slipped to 62.3 in February, compared to 64.5 in January, and IIB Bank chief economist Austin Hughes said decline in February suggests that the trend in sentiment is clearly downwards but remains reasonably controlled.

“We reckon that caution rather than a shortage of cash is the key driver of Irish consumer sentiment and spending at present.