The bar chart below shows the average weekly spending in one country in 1968 and 2018.
Overall, there were noticeable changes in the proportion of income allocated to almost all categories over the period, with the exception of household goods, which showed little variation. In addition, the spending of food and leisure experienced particularly significant changes over the period.
In 1968, fodd accounted for by far the largest proportion of weekly spending, at approximately 35%. By contrast, spending on leisure was relatively low, at just under 10%. Housing and clothing and footware also took up moderate shares of income, while the remaining categories, including transport,personal goods and household goods, each represented less than 10%.
By 2018, the pattern had changed considerably. The proportion of income spend on food had almost halved to around 17%, whereas leisure rose sharply to just over 20%, becoming the largest category. Housing also increased significantly, while expenditure on clothing and fuel and power declined further.