LONDON, May 20 (Xinhua) -- British households showed their strongest pessimism in May over current financial wellbeing since September 2017, according to a survey released Monday by IHS Markit, a London-based global information provider.
The seasonally adjusted IHS Markit Household Finance Index (HFI) recorded 42.5 in May, down from April's 43.8, hitting the lowest point since September 2017.
Meanwhile, household perceptions on job security remained downbeat in May, with those employed in manufacturing and retail sectors being the most pessimistic towards job security.
In terms of anticipation on a rate hike from Bank of England over the coming six months, some 45 percent of households predicted a base rate rise, up from nearly 39 percent in April.
"UK households continued to show pessimism towards their financial health during May, with the respective index hitting a 20-month low and signalling a stronger level of negativity," Joe Hayes, an economist at IHS Markit said.
"Despite the latest labour market data showing historically-low unemployment and reasonably robust wage growth, weak confidence has acted to undermine these trends and led to belt-tightening at UK households," said Hayes, adding that "job security perceptions remained downbeat once again."
"It does seem, however, that households expect the current situation to stabilize over the coming year, with financial expectations turning less subdued in May." Hayes added.
