British consumers are gloomier about ?the ?economy than at any ?time since records began in 1978, according to a ?survey published on Wednesday that showed the Iran war and soaring oil prices ?are taking a heavy toll ?on British households. The Economic Optimism Index of market research firm ?Ipsos, measuring ?the gap between those who are optimistic about the economy ?and those who are pessimistic, fell to a record low of -72 this month. That was below a previous low of -68 a year ago when U.S. President Donald ?Trump imposed trade tariffs on imports from the rest of the world.