Barclaycard Spending Index Shows July Year-On-Year Growth Up 9.9%

Consumer spending on cards saw a near double digit increase in July compared to the same month last year, challenging concerns that consumer confidence has dipped.

According the latest figures released by Barclaycard, traditional summer discounting by retailers appears to have enticed consumers back to the high street, with the amount spent on debit and credit card purchases, in-store and online, increasing by 9.9% in July compared to the same month last year. Year-on-year figures have steadily increased since the start of 2010, with July representing the third month in a row that these figures have increased by more than 9%.

The figures run contrary to recent reports of a dip in consumer confidence – including the British Retail Consortium’s Index of Consumer Confidence – suggesting that a gap exists between what consumers say about their financial prospects and how they behave, with spending on the high street remaining strong.

Stuart Neal, head of Barclaycard UK Payment Acceptance said: “If consumer confidence is taking a hit, it’s not happening on the high street. If spending remains at this level compared to last year, 2010 could prove overall to be a very good year for retailers.”

Compared with June, the spending figures showed a slight increase in July by 1.9%, partly through consumers taking advantage of the earlier start to summer sales and July having 31 days rather than June’s 30 days.

Via EPR Network
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Saxo Bank Joins SunGard As Co-Title Sponsor In 2011

It has been announced that Saxobank, the trading and investment specialist, is to become a co-title sponsor with SunGard, one of the world’s leading software and technology services companies.

Following the announcement during the Tour de France that SunGard had agreed to become co-title sponsor for the next two years, Bjarne Riis, owner and manager of Riis Cycling A/S, revealed at a press conference in Copenhagen that Saxo Bank will be the other co-title sponsor in 2011. The Team will be called “Saxo Bank-SunGard Professional Cycling Team”.

Bjarne Riis said: “I am very happy to announce Saxo Bank and SunGard as future partners. With these two companies committed to the team, we have a solid financial foundation for the future. Saxo Bank and SunGard have ensured that the Team can continue its essential role within the world of cycling and will be able to maintain competing at the highest level. With Saxo Bank and SunGard as two strong backers, our future looks very bright. I am grateful for their commitment and I am confident that this will be mutually beneficial to all involved.”

Based on the prospects presented by the Team for 2011, Saxo Bank has taken a strategic decision to sponsor the Team for one more year. Saxo Bank has sponsored the Team since 2008 but took over as main title sponsor on 1 January 2009. According to the Bank, the sponsorship has already achieved great branding results and increased Saxo Bank’s name recognition around the world. Saxo Bank’s decision to continue the sponsorship for yet another year is based on a genuine wish to support the Team but also a commercial decision to further build on the advantages that Saxo Bank believes is extended through this additional commitment to the Team. The new, unnamed sponsor, announced during the Tour de France, was willing to step aside in order for the Team’s new plans to materialize.

In a joint statement, Kim Fournais and Lars Seier Christensen, Co-CEOs and co-founders of Saxo Bank, said: “Bjarne Riis has delivered excellent results over the past couple of years and has an impressive plan for 2011.We believe it’s important to recognize an unprecedented opportunity when you see one and therefore, we have decided to continue our sponsorship for one more year. In Saxo Bank, we always aim for the top and we believe Bjarne Riis and his Team can reach that goal next year. While our past collaboration with Bjarne Riis has been fantastic, we also know and trust the new co-title sponsor, SunGard, and that has made this strategic decision an even easier one to make.”

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