Consumer card spending in furniture stores declined during January when compared to last year, says new data from Barclays.

According to the latest Barclays Consumer Spending Index, which includes both debit and credit cards, furniture store spending growth declined 5.3%, while transaction growth also fell 6.9% against the same month last year.

Home improvement and DIY stores saw spending growth fall 1.4%, with transaction growth down 0.2%. Department stores saw spending growth increase 8.3%, with transaction growth also up by 10.5%. Discount stores saw 4.2% and 2% growth respectively.

Overall, consumer card spending grew 9.7% year-on-year in January, slightly above the 9.2% rise in consumer price inflation. Data from Barclays, which sees nearly half of the nation’s credit and debit card transactions, reveals that spending on essential items increased 8.3% – a sizeable uplift compared to December (5.1%). Spending on non-essential items grew 10.4% year-on-year in January – the largest increase since May 2022.

Esme Harwood, Director at Barclays, said: “January saw a number of categories bounce back from last year’s Plan B restrictions thanks to Brits booking holidays, taking trips to the cinema, and snapping up bargains in the sales.

“However, while it’s encouraging that confidence in household finances saw a slight boost, it is clear that Brits will still need to find ways to manage their budgets over the coming months amid rising grocery price inflation and mounting utility bills.”

Silvia Ardagna, Head of European Economics Research at Barclays, said: “Looking ahead, we think that the UK economy is likely to contract in Q1, as demand drops in real terms due to the loss in household purchasing power, as well as rising energy and mortgage bills. However, the silver lining is that the labour market remains tight, with low unemployment and elevated wage growth.”