Following a slight rise in consumer confidence in September, optimism has now fallen back to August levels.

According to the monthly survey from GfK NOP, confidence in October is back down to -36, after rising to -32 in September.

Confidence in “now being a good time to save” has seen a drop of nine points, while confidence in the general economy over the last 12 months has dropped ten points.

Rachael Joy in the consumer confidence team at GfK NOP, said: “Consumers are not at all confident about buying major purchases as rising food and energy bills leave them increasingly worried about keeping up with payments, and saving has also seen a considerable drop, possibly due to fears of the safety of savings, as well as straightened resources as household bills increase.

“Even the reduction of the interest rate and lower petrol prices are unlikely to have a significant affect on confidence in the upcoming months as consumers brace themselves for what they see as a very difficult economic time over the Christmas period ahead.”

The prospect for retailers leading up to the crucial Christmas period is also looking gloomy, as confidence in ‘now being a good time to make major purchases’ – such as furniture or electrical goods – has also dropped 11 points to -43, the lowest since the series began in 1982.

However, there is some optimism in the survey: expectations for the general economic situation over the next twelve months have risen by three points to -37, suggesting co-ordinated government efforts to stall the economic crisis may have increased confidence.