Warm weather and Easter weekend boosted UK spending in April, says Barclays

Consumers shrugged off anxiety over effect of US tariffs as card spending grew by 4.5% year on year

British households increased their spending in April as unusually warm weather and the long Easter weekend helped consumers shrug off anxiety around the global economy, new data has suggested.

Consumer card spending grew by 4.5% in April compared with the same period last year, the biggest rise since June 2023, the high street bank Barclays found. Non-essential spending, such as on entertainment or takeaway food, rose by 5.1% last month, its highest rate in almost two years.