The news is now rolling in a bad way economically speaking. UK retail sales fell much more sharply than was expected by analysts in March. Of course, it was the cost of living crisis for many households, spurred on by non-stop reports of rampant inflation that saw discretionary spending dive. This in turn pushed Sterling down to its weakest level for two years making imports even more expensive.

The fall of 1.4 per cent in retail sales, the Office for National Statistics said, was much worse than the 0.3 per cent drop previously forecast and was the second consecutive monthly decline.

The Economic Times has, unlike other analysts, forecast that the UK economy will suffer worse than expected because of a perfect economic storm. It’s not just about the cost-of-living crisis. Hints of recession, of stagflation and so on all pile on the pressure – and households will prepare for the storm. Discretionary spending suddenly falls. Netflix lost 40 per cent of its share value in a matter of days when it warned investors that subscriptions had fallen for the first time. They fell, not because content was poor – but because people are pulling in the belt in anticipation of worse to come.

Energy prices have gone up but most people are not feeling the effects of that yet – but in six months’ time, they will, especially when the energy price cap by Ofgem is reviewed.

New data only last week showed that UK consumer confidence plunged to a near all-time low since records began in 1974, reflecting the impact of the cost of living crisis.

Confidence everywhere is falling. Optimism among global fund managers has plummeted. UK share prices are heading south, household savings have collapsed and credit card debt is already at an all-time high.

Three weeks ago, The Economic Times forecasted a plummet in consumer confidence and said:

“The startling figure that emerges is that whilst 34.2% of the UK population will be facing bills they can’t pay – the increased cost of living will mean that nearly half (48%) of children will be living in households unable to provide them with an acceptable standard of living. For single people with children, that figure rises to 77 per cent. With almost half of the population now making drastic cuts to expenditure – a recession is imminent – and rapidly declining consumer confidence is the signal that confirms this.”

The rapid fall in retail sales is a very strong indicator that the country is heading towards a recession.