Little cheer for consumer confidence
Worries about the economy and job prospects are continuing to play on consumers' nerves and putting a damper on optimistic forecasts by the Bank of England's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC).
That's the grim news coming from the Nationwide Building Society in its monthly Consumer Confidence Index. The index rose by just one point in March, after falling continually since November last year.
Nationwide reckons the "continued sluggishness" of consumer spending after a strong Christmas is putting the MPC off cutting interest rates.
