British spending hits a record high of

Latest research from MINTEL’s flagship British Lifestyles report finds that spending has hit a record high as British consumers parted with as much as £1 trillion (a million million) last year alone. On average this works out at around £37,000 for every household across Britain today. These levels of spending show a massive 43% increase in real terms (once inflation has been taken into account) on 1995 figures, when spend stood at just a little over £540 billion. In real terms, growth over the last decade has been greatest in the ‘considered expenditure’ arena, which includes all big ticket purchases such as holidays, cars, furniture and appliances. Collectively these markets experienced an impressive 57% growth over the ten years to 2005. This is compared to 51% growth in ‘housing and finance’ and a 49% increase in ‘occasional expenditure’, which are basic necessities, that need some consideration before purchasing, such as clothing, kitchenware and going out. The smallest growth was seen in ‘everyday expenditure’, including food and drink, tobacco, printed media, medication and toiletries, which grew by only 18% over the same ten year period.