India No. 2 in global optimism sweep: Ipsos
India ranks as the second-most optimistic country among 30 markets in the April 2026 wave of Ipsos’ What Worries the World survey, with 72% of urban Indians saying the country is moving in the right direction. This places India firmly among a small cluster of high-confidence economies.
Globally, however, sentiment remains markedly pessimistic. Across the 30 markets surveyed, nearly two in three respondents, or 62%, believe their countries are on the wrong track, underscoring a sharp contrast with India’s upbeat outlook.
The optimism axis is concentrated in just five markets, Singapore, India, Malaysia, South Korea and Indonesia, while most others lean negative. A few countries, including Colombia, Argentina and Israel, show deeply polarized public opinion.
At the other end of the spectrum, pessimism is especially pronounced in parts of Europe and Latin America. France and Peru stand out, with 91% and 89% of citizens respectively saying their nations are headed in the wrong direction.
The findings highlight India’s strong positioning in global sentiment, even as much of the world remains uncertain about the future.
“India’s approach reflects a high degree of geopolitical pragmatism, balancing strategic neutrality with sustained international engagement. In the context of ongoing tensions in West Asia and the resulting volatility in global energy markets, the government has taken calibrated steps to cushion domestic consumers. Retail fuel prices have been broadly contained through targeted excise duty adjustments, effectively absorbing part of the external shock and mitigating pass-through pressures on households.
At the same time, food inflation remains relatively well anchored, suggesting that supply-side management and policy interventions are yielding results. Taken together, these measures point to a steady, macroeconomically prudent response aimed at preserving stability while navigating a complex global environment,” said Suresh Ramalingam, CEO, Ipsos India.
Mapping concerns: India and the world
The survey also highlights a clear divergence in public concerns between India and the global average. In India, employment remains the dominant worry, cited by 43% of respondents, pointing to persistent anxieties around job creation despite broader economic optimism. Concerns around financial and political corruption (29%) and crime and violence (26%) follow, indicating continued sensitivity to governance and public safety issues. Inflation, at 24%, appears relatively contained as a public concern, while education (20%) and poverty and social inequality (20%) round out the list, reflecting structural priorities that remain in focus.
Globally, the hierarchy of concerns is led by inflation at 33%, underscoring the widespread impact of cost-of-living pressures across markets. Crime and violence (31%), poverty and social inequality (28%), and unemployment (28%) follow closely, alongside financial and political corruption (26%). The data suggests that while global sentiment is being shaped by immediate economic stressors such as inflation, India’s concerns are more employment-led, with relatively lower anxiety around price pressures.
“In India, the data reflects a shift from short-term price anxieties to more structural concerns such as employment and governance. This is indicative of a relatively better-managed inflation environment compared to global peers. At the same time, the prominence of unemployment as a top concern highlights the need for sustained focus on job creation to align economic growth with public expectations. Globally, inflation continues to dominate sentiment, reinforcing the uneven nature of recovery and the pressures facing households across markets,” said Suresh Ramalingam, CEO, Ipsos India.
The survey is now conducted online, in line with other markets, offering a more urban-centric perspective.
