NEWS
Household spending holds up as Budget worries hit shoppers
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Spending on household goods increased by 1.2 per cent in September, according to new figures from Barclays, although concerns ahead of the Autumn Budget are prompting consumers to cut back on non-essential purchases. The latest Barclays Consumer Spend report
revealed that overall card spending grew by 2 per cent year-on-year in September, slightly below August’s 2.1 per cent increase and behind the latest CPIH inflation rate of 3.3 per cent. Within the household category, furniture stores and
electronics retailers both saw spending rise by 1 per cent, while Home Improvements and DIY increased by 1.2 per cent. General retailers and marketplaces performed
particularly well, recording a 4.4 per cent increase in spending. However, department stores experienced a 1.2 per cent decline, highlighting the mixed picture across the retail sector. Overall retail spending grew by 1.1 per cent, while non-essential spending increased by 1.8 per cent, compared with a 2.5 per cent rise in essential spending. Despite the relatively modest growth, consumer
confidence in household finances reached a seven- month high of 67 per cent, up from 66 per cent in August.
Confidence in consumers’ ability to live within their
means also improved, rising from 71 per cent to 73 per cent, while confidence in job security edged up to 45 per cent.
Charity tackles regulation and emerging tech at annual Conference
Consumer safety charity Electrical Safety First has announced that its annual Electrical Product Safety Conference will be taking place on 26 November 2026, at Church House, Westminster, London. Now in its 18th year, the conference brings together
leading experts and industry figures to explore the most pressing challenges in electrical product safety, share insight, and identify practical solutions. The theme for this year’s conference, ‘Regulation, Responsibility, Risk’, will provide practical insights on policy, compliance and enforcement. This will include the evolving legislative landscape and how the Product Regulation and Metrology Act might impact this. The conference will also examine how emerging technologies are transforming product safety from design through to real-world use, as well as the
safety challenges linked to a more circular economy as products are reused and repaired. Attendees will benefit from a full day of expert-led sessions, with leading voices from across the product safety landscape sharing insight, best practice and emerging thinking. To find out more, please visit: https://www.
electricalsafetyfirst.org.uk/conference
AEG reveals UK’s worst places for
drying laundry this winter
New research from AEG has revealed which UK towns and cities face the toughest conditions for drying clothes outdoors during the colder months. The appliance manufacturer analysed Met
Office data covering 197 locations, comparing rainfall, sunshine hours and humidity between September and February.
Derry/Londonderry topped the rankings with
a Drying Difficulty Score of 86.8 out of 100, recording an average of 102.9 rainy days and just 366.5 hours of sunshine – the lowest of all locations examined. Cumbernauld came second with 83.5, followed by Rochdale (82.7), Burnley (82.6) and East Kilbride (80.0). At the other end of the scale, Southend- on-Sea was named the easiest place to dry washing outdoors, scoring just 20.3. Clacton- on-Sea, Margate, Weymouth and Bognor Regis completed the top five. Bognor Regis recorded the highest sunshine
total, with 617.4 hours between September and February.
An AEG spokesperson said: “The trouble is,
you can check the forecast, see there’s no rain coming and put everything out, only to find it’s still damp hours later. So it’s not necessarily the wettest places where people will struggle most.” The study used Met Office climate averages
from 1991 to 2020, with rainfall, sunshine and relative humidity equally weighted to calculate each location’s score.
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