Shoppers in the UK spent a total of £50.2 billion on Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) in the first quarter of 2024, states a recent report.
According to new insight from the NIQ Retail Spend Barometer, which is powered by GfK intelligence, the spend on FMCG saw an uplift of 6.2 per cent compared with the same period last year.
The report states that slowing food inflation (down to 3.7 per cent in March) is enabling shoppers to add more items to their shopping basket. This has helped to drive minor positive volume growth throughout Q1 2024 for the first time since Q1 2021. This unit growth is driven by fresh and perishable food (+6.8 per cent), due to its faster drop in inflation.
As a result of slowing price increases, despite an improved volume trend, there is a slowdown in value growth from +7.1 in Q4 2023 to +6.2 per cent in Q1 2024.
Ben Morrison, Retail Services Director UK & IRE at NIQ, said, “It’s clear that there’s been a steady uplift in sales for FMCG, particularly as inflation continues to slow. The prospect for the rest of the year is cautiously optimistic. We see the reduction in inflation continuing to help fuel shopper sentiment.
"Consumers are still cautious around their spending – particularly on larger, more expensive goods – and this continues to impact T&D.”
Tech & Durables market experienced a -2.6 per cent value decline in Q1 2024, this was driven by a drop in sales for Technical Consumer Goods (-4.9 per cent) including audio and vision electronics and mobile phones as well as Home Appliances (-5.2 per cent). This is likely a result of the economic and political environment, and exacerbated by a lack of new products entering the market.
