It is estimated that on Thursday the barrier of 100 pounds for filling the tank of an average family car will be broken.
London, Thanasis Gavos
Successive are the record prices that the British are facing, mainly in fuel and food, with the result that surveys show a clear concern for the future and a growing economic difficulty.
According to the latest data from the road insurance company RAC, a new high average price of gasoline was recorded on Wednesday, which reached 180.73 pence per liter (2.11 euros). Diesel also set a new record at 186.57 pence per liter (2.18 euros).
The company warns that based on the current rate of increase in fuel costs, on Thursday it will break the barrier of 100 pounds to fill the tank of an average family car.
RAC Representative pointed out that 24 hours a day until Tuesday night the price of gasoline recorded the largest daily increase in 17 years, ie by 2.27 pence per liter.
Concerns for the British in the run-up to summer and the big increase in air ticket prices.
In fact, the popular low-cost airline Wizz Air warned that between July and September ticket prices will increase by almost 10% compared to the summer of 2019, the last summer before the pandemic.
According to KPMG’s monthly UK retail sales report, sales in May were down 1.1% from April and 1.5% from May last year, when the country was still under restrictions due to Covid.
The sales of high value items, such as furniture and electronics, suffered a major blow, something that analysts attribute to the increased cost of living.
It is noted that the forecast for inflation in Britain by the Bank of England is that it will slightly exceed 10% in the fall. It is already at a high of 40 years, at 9%.
Another worrying sign of the difficulties facing British households is that credit card use is growing at the fastest rate since 2005.
According to the Bank of England, total lending through the use of credit cards, personal loans, car installment settlement and the use of bank account overdraft increased to 5.7% in April from 5.2% in the previous month. Specifically for credit cards, their use increased in April by 11.6%.
A survey of the well-known sales and auction site eBay also reveals that one in four users bought used clothes in 2021, with the relevant searches having increased by 40% compared to 2020.
As a result, 25% of those surveyed in the HyperJar personal finance management survey say that the greatest stress on their mental health comes from the increased cost of living and managing the family budget at this time.
One in five say they limit their own consumer desires to meet family needs.
HyperJar CEO Matt Megens commented: “It’s extremely sad to see how the cost-of-living crisis is affecting parents across the country – worrying about your personal situation is one thing, but when others depend on us the stress just gets worse. ».
In this context, and wanting to win some of the rebel Conservative MPs who voted against him in the recent intra-party vote of confidence, Prime Minister Boris Johnson will announce in the near future a series of further measures to alleviate the financial burden on families.
These will include measures to reduce the cost of childcare and assistance with the purchase of a first home.
