Brexit uncertainty not weighing on consumer spending

Consumers appear to have shrugged off EU referendum uncertainty which should help prevent GDP growth from slowing much in Q2. And spending should continue to grow at rates around its historical average. Admittedly, austerity is set to bite in coming years and the boost to spending power from past falls in commodity prices and rises in sterling are fading. But consumer confidence remains historically-high despite the looming EU referendum. What’s more, there have been signs that past erosion of labour market slack has started to result in rising nominal earnings growth and low inflation should continue to support real pay growth.