British Economic Confidence Plummets to Record Low

LONDON: According to a recent survey by Ipsos MORI, British public confidence in the economy for the upcoming year has reached an all-time low. The poll indicates that only a small fraction of the population anticipates any positive change in the economic climate.

The survey reveals that 75% of individuals in Britain anticipate a deterioration of the economy over the next 12 months, marking an 8-percentage-point increase since March, according to Ipsos.

A mere 7% of those surveyed believe the economy will show signs of improvement in the coming year, while 13% expect it to remain stable. The resulting net balance of minus 68 signifies the lowest level of optimism recorded since Ipsos began tracking this data in 1978.

Already fragile among both British businesses and consumers, economic confidence has been further dampened by recent tariffs imposed by the United States and apprehension surrounding the condition of the UK economy. This has caused a significant decline in optimism, reaching levels not witnessed since the 1980 recession, the financial crisis of 2008, and the cost-of-living crisis associated with COVID-19, Ipsos reported.

During these previous crises, the net balance regarding economic confidence stood at minus 64, according to Ipsos.

These findings present a setback for Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who assumed office last July with the goal of making Britain the fastest-growing economy within the Group of Seven.

Gideon Skinner, Ipsos’ senior director of UK Politics, stated that “Pessimism about the economy (was) already up 30 percentage points compared with last June even before this month’s figures.”

He further added, “Few prime ministers have faced this level of economic pessimism at this stage in.”

The British government, which is responsible for an economy heavily reliant on trade compared to other G20 nations, is actively engaged in negotiations with the United States to establish a new economic agreement in an effort to avert reciprocal tariffs imposed by the US.