Consumer confidence may remain high but Greeks are not optimistic, survey shows
Greek consumer confidence remains unchanged in October, according to the Economic Barometer – Consumer Climate Index (CCI) for October published by Public Issue on Tuesday, though the survey shows that 84 percent of citizens continue to believe that their financial situation is worse today than it was one year ago.
According to the survey, the CCI rose marginally by 0.8 points from September to 58.5 percent, with the Current Economic Conditions Index (CECI) showing a decrease of 3.6 points compared to the previous month and the Consumer Expectations Index (CEI) an increase of roughly equal magnitude at 3.7 points.
Expectations for the economy also rose sharply by 7.4 points in October compared to the previous month, with almost one in five, or 18 percent of respondents saying that they expect the economy to improve during the next 12 months.
Expectations for the economy over the next five years also rose by 4.9 points relative to September, surpassing the 100-point mark for the first time since last June, with 40 percent of respondents foreseeing a recovery of the economy over the coming five years, up 3 percent compared to September.
However, on a personal level, Public Issue found that the propensity to buy has declined markedly by 6.3 points in just one month, with nearly two in three consumers (64 percent) saying that the current period is not appropriate for major purchases of household equipment (furniture, electrical appliances, etc).
Just 6 percent of respondents, meanwhile, said they expect their personal financial situation to improve over the coming year, representing a dip of 1.2 points compared to September.
Compared to the start of the year, however, consumer confidence has recovered strongly. Currently standing at around 58 points, the relevant index has fluctuated sharply on account of the major political and economic developments that have taken place since January.
Propensity to buy has increased by 3.1 points to 63.1 in October from 60.6 in January, while assessments of personal financial situation reached 19 in October against 13 in January, the Public Issue survey found.
