Consumer confidence edged up this month, new figures from the British Retail Consortium and Opinium show, but in spite of the brighter outlook, recovery remains fragile as long tail of inflation fears still loom.

According to BRC-Opinium data, consumers’ economic expectations improved by +5 index points, up from -48 in May, while confidence in their personal financial situation also grew by +1 point to -15 in June.

While shoppers said their overall spending over the next three months would rise, they said their propensity to spend on retail would fall, dropping -2 index points since May, suggesting that discretionary spend on goods may suffer.

“Consumer confidence ticked up again in June, with people feeling slightly less pessimistic about both the economy and their personal finances,” said Helen Dickinson, Chief Executive of the British Retail Consortium. “This coincided with a lull in the Middle East conflict at the start of June, easing concerns about energy prices and inflation.”

The conflict in the Middle East remained a key concern, with 79% fearing the impact of ongoing tensions on food prices and 80% concerned that energy bills would rise as a result.

However this was down month-on-month by -3 percentage points compared to May.

“It’s all to play for as fast moving events in the Middle East and at home could shake consumer confidence or allow the improvements to gain momentum next month,” Dickinson added.