The FINANCIAL — The amount spent on credit and debit cards, in-store and online, was 9.1% higher in May compared to the same month last year, according to data collected by Barclaycard.
Looking at the month-to-month picture, spending increased from April to May by 6.5% as consumers spent more on cards in a month with two bank holidays and confidence increased following the formation of the new Government and consumers looking forward to the World Cup.
Spending on cards has enjoyed month-on-month increases for the last three months giving some cause for optimism to the retail market.
The Barclaycard Retail Card Spending Index is based on spending on all credit and debit cards, across 44 retail sectors at the 87,000 businesses in the UK that use Barclaycard Global Payment Acceptance to process their credit and debit card payments. This represents an overall market share of over 30%.
Stuart Neal, Head of UK Payment Acceptance said:
“Retailers will take heart from seeing consistent year-on-year increases in spending on cards over the last few months. Many will have been looking to the build up to the World Cup as an opportunity to boost sales and following concerns that a hung parliament could have a negative effect on consumer confidence, the confirmation of a new Government may well have given a boost to high street spending.”
