LONDON: British consumer spending grew at its fastest rate in eight months in January, helped by a rebound in clothing and footwear sales, figures from payment card company Visa Europe showed on Monday. Seasonally adjusted consumer spending rose by 2.7 per cent year-on-year, the fastest rate since May 2015 and up from 2.2 per cent in December, according to the monthly survey. Last week the Bank of England cut its growth forecasts for 2016 and 2017, blaming a weaker world economy, but said domestic demand should remain strong, bolstered by cheaper oil prices and a modest pick-up in wage growth.