Rising energy prices saw the average spending on utility bills in May jumping by more than a third compared to the same month last year, data from Barclaycard show.
The company, which sees nearly half of the UK’s credit and debit card transactions, on Tuesday said its latest monthly Consumer Spending Index indicated a 9.3 percent year-on-year average spending growth in May.
Average spending on essential items grew 4.8 percent on May last year, largely propped up by inflation, Barclaycard said.
An average customer’s utility bills saw a 34.5 percent surge in May compared to the same month last year. It comes after the UK’s energy regular raised the country’s energy price cap in April by a historical 54 percent to reflect the spiking global gas prices….