Consumer confidence falls again as Brexit and the local political stalemate take their toll
Consumer confidence in Northern Ireland fell again in the third quarter of 2019 as heightened Brexit uncertainty and another three months without a functioning Executive took their toll on local people.
The Danske Bank Northern Ireland Consumer Confidence Index fell to 131 in Q3 2019, down from 136 in the second quarter of the year but above the reading of 123 posted in the third quarter of 2018.
This latest quarterly fall in consumer confidence can be put down to familiar factors – Brexit and the local political impasse. When the survey took place in September, Brexit-related uncertainty was at heightened levels and so the relatively high proportion of people citing the UK’s exit from the EU as a drag on their confidence levels was to be expected. In addition to Brexit, more than a quarter of people pointed to the ongoing political stalemate at Stormont as something which put a dent in confidence in quarter three.
