No Comfort for Home Front Britain

Consumers Slash Spending as Confidence in Economy Plummets

LONDON, February 20, 2011 - It's tough out there: a quarter of Brits believe their jobs are less
secure than a month ago. Over half expect their financial household situation
to worsen in the next 12 months and the majority believe prices will rise in
the next year.

To view the full press release with table and graph findings please
click here: bit.ly/e3nKhB

That's according to the latest wave of the Household Economic Activity
Tracker from Bloomberg//YouGov. Mike Nardis, Senior Vice President,
Investment Products at YouGov, commented on the findings: "Consumer spending
behaviour in the past 12 months has shown where our priorities lie: staying
in and staying in touch are valued and worth our hard earned cash, but going
out for meals, to clubs and bars, buying clothes and shoes and even stopping
at the coffee shop are all off the menu. The outlook for the next 12 month is
equally bleak."

Spend or save?

Spending on groceries and TV subscriptions increased over the past 12
months. Mobile phone spend was virtually untouched while Britons tightened
their belts, as only a handful (4%) more people cut spending on phones than
increased it. Investment in TV subscriptions rose across all age groups.
Staying in - and staying in touch - are the new spending priorities. Dining
out and buying clothes and shoes polarised the population - they appear on
both sides of Table 1 (see above). Older people increased spend as younger
consumers felt the squeeze.

Job Security: A thing of the past

Job security has become job insecurity, with the 18-35s in the strongest
position, while the over-35s feel the least secure. On average, 26% of people
feel less secure in their job this month compared to the last, while 69% saw
no change.

Homeowners: It's Bleak House for Britain

While the past month was seen by many as a stagnant time for house
prices, the pessimists still outweigh the optimists, with 28% saying they
felt their property value had fallen in that time, and only 7% seeing an
increase. In a fairly bleak outlook, Northern Ireland emerges as the most
despondent, with 45% of homeowners expecting a fall in the value of their
homes.

Coffee: latte goes super-skinny

Signs from the research show that Brits have called time on their
expensive 'coffee to go' caffeine fix. 47% of coffee drinkers cut back on
spending on coffee over the past 12 months.

TV Subscriptions: credit crunched Britons turn to the remote control
Spending on TV subscriptions is the only media sector where consumers are
spending significantly more across all age groups. Of applicable respondents,
55% are spending the same, and 19% have increased spend slightly - and
another 4% significantly. The consumers leading this spending increase are
those aged 55 and over (34% of applicable 55+s have increased spend). It may
be a cliche but it's true - staying in watching the TV is the old 'new' going
out.

Going to the movies: a third of cinema goers have cut back

British movie stars may be winning awards in Hollywood, but 48% of
consumers who go to the movies have decreased their spending on the flicks.
41% are spending the same.

Eating out: Consumers take the knife to restaurant bills

Eating out has also fallen victim as a luxury we can't afford, with half
(52%) of us spending less on eating out over the past 12 months. As with many
other areas in the household, it is the hard-pressed 35-54 year olds, those
earning under GBP30K, and parents with children (56%, 55%, and 58%
respectively) who have given up the treat of eating out.

Note to Editors

Bloomberg//YouGov used the YouGov panel of online respondents. From
January 9th - February 4th, 130-150 respondents were interviewed each weekday
(excluding the holiday period) in the UK and the US countries in order to
give a balanced perspective on household economic activity over the month. In
the UK, 2,618 respondents were interviewed. Please source all data
"Bloomberg//YouGov Household Economic Activity Tracker."

About YouGov

YouGov is an international, full service market research agency offering
added value consultancy, qualitative research, field and tab services,
syndicated products such as the daily brand perception tracker BrandIndex,
fast turnaround omnibus and comprehensive market intelligence reports.
YouGov's sector specialist teams serve financial, media, technology and
telecoms, FMCG and public sector markets. YouGov is considered a pioneer of
online market research and has a panel of 2.5 million people worldwide,
including over 300,000 people in the UK representing all ages, socio-economic
groups and other demographic types. As the most quoted market research agency
in the UK, YouGov has a well-documented and published track record
illustrating the accuracy of its survey methods. For further information
visit www.yougov.com

For more information please contact: HEAT at YouGov: Michael Nardis (New York), Senior Vice President, Investment Products, mike at yougov.com (t) +1-646-723-4664 (m) +1-650-804-2900. Andy Morris (London), Group Director of New Products andy.morris at yougov.com, (t) +44-(0)20-7012-6109. Greenfields Communications: Lucy Green lgreen at greenfieldscommunications.com T: +44-(0)7817-698366. Lynda Hardy Maskell, lhardymaskell at greenfieldscommunications.com T: +44-(0)7979-646020