Consumer sentiment weakened in July, according to figures from IIB Bank and the Economic and Social Research Institute.
Their consumer sentiment index recorded 96.5 last month, compared with 99.6 in June. The index for current conditions dropped from 107.7 to 101.9, while the expectations index, which measures sentiment about the coming months, declined from 94.2 to 93.
IIB economist Austin Hughes said consumer sentiment was now at its lowest level since late 2004. He said this was because solid economic conditions did not appear to have delivered the scale of improvement in living standards that people had expected.
The economist said the most negative element of the July report was a weaker buying climate, as rising energy costs and worries about debt may have made consumers more cautious about making major purchases. He also noted that July car registrations were lower than in the same month in 2004.
