UK household finances improve in June after May slump - Markit

LONDON, June 15 (Reuters) - British households turned a bit more upbeat about their finances in June, according to a survey which suggested a slowdown in the economy ahead of next week's European Union membership was not having a big impact on incomes.

Financial data company Markit (NasdaqGS: MRKT - news) said on Wednesday that its Household Finance Index rose to 44.9 this month from a 22-month low of 42.3 in May, helped by rising income from employment and low inflation.

Spending rose at the sharpest rate in nearly a year, the survey showed.

"That said, households' financial projections were downbeat on average for the third month running - the longest sequence of pessimism since September 2014," Markit economist Philip Leake said in a statement.

Some households brought forward their expectations for the timing of the first Bank of England interest rate increase since the financial crisis.

The proportion of households forecasting a rate hike in the next six months rose to 27 percent, up from 22 percent in May, and 52 percent expected a hike in the next 12 months.

British economic growth lost some of its pace in the first three months of 2016 and is expected to slow further in the April-June period as uncertainty about the outcome of the EU referendum weighs on investment by businesses. (Reporting by William Schomberg)