Online food spend boom

Online spending on food surged in December while fuel spending declined, as many people geared up for a low-key Christmas because of the pandemic, according to new figures.

Despite consumer spending falling by 2.3% year-on-year in December, online grocery spending surged by 88% as households stocked up on Christmas food, Barclaycard said.

Supermarket spending grew by 14.7% but fuel sales fell by 20.7% as many families scrapped festive travel plans. The firm said in-store retail spending fell by 8.3%, but online retail spending increased by 52.2% and accounted for 46.8% of all retail spending in December.

Raheel Ahmed, head of consumer products, said changing coronavirus restrictions continue to have an impact on spending habits.