Global Consumer Confidence Remains Steady at 50.3 in October
This month, the Ipsos Global Consumer Confidence Index shows steadiness after a three-month increase of 0.1 points to 50.3. China (75.6, up 5.4), the United States (62.7, up 1.2), India (62.1, down 2.7), and Sweden (61.2, up 1.0) continue to lead the pack in national economic confidence. Argentina (36.1, down 4.1) and Turkey (36.5, down 3.4) represent the other side of the coin as the two countries demonstrating the least confidence in their current economic situation. Joining China with significant increases in confidence of 1.5 or more points are Italy (+3.1 to 45.6), Mexico (+3.1 to 51.7), and Saudi Arabia (+1.7 to 59.7). In addition to showing the lowest overall index values, Argentina and Turkey report the largest drops and are joined by South Korea (-3.2 to 42.9), India, and Spain (-1.8 to 42.9) as this month’s most pessimistic movers.
The Jobs Index shows a slight increase of 0.3 points, globally, to report in at 58.9. With a 3.0-point increase to 74.9, the United States ekes into the top spot ahead of Sweden (74.3 up 1.2). Germany (72.8 up 1.5) rounds out the top three index scorers. In addition to the United States and Germany, Italy (+4.0 to 57.2), Mexico (+2.1 to 51.5), Russia (+1.7 to 50.0), and Great Britain (+1.5 to 66.6) show significant increases. Meanwhile, four countries show significant decreases: Argentina (-5.0 to 41.6), China (-2.5 to 69.8), India (-1.7 to 59.5), and Poland (-1.5 to 64.0).
After a 0.5-point drop, the Expectations Index shows a global average of 58.2. China (74.8, up 2.3) is the most optimistic country about its economic future and the only one to score above 70. Meanwhile, just Turkey (42.9, down 5.6) and France (49.3, down 0.9) report a value lower than 50. Five countries see significant increases this month: Mexico (+4.4 to 67.0), China, Sweden (+2.0 to 64.5), Saudi Arabia (+1.8 to 64.7), and Brazil (+1.7 to 63.8). Balancing these five out are six countries who see significant decreases: Turkey, South Korea (-4.9 to 51.4), Spain (-3.2 to 52.4), South Africa (-3.0 to 50.0), Great Britain (-2.1 to 53.2), and Argentina (-1.8 to 52.3).
The Investment Index remains steady showing just a 0.1-point increase to 43.6. China reports impressive investment optimism with a 10.7-point increase to 79.1 – the highest score every recorded by any country for any of the four indices since Ipsos started tracked them eight years ago. India (63.0 down 3.6) reports a distant second in the investment index. Japan (28.1, down 0.1) continues to show low investment values along with Argentina (28.9, down 4.6), Turkey (29.0, down 4.8), France (31.3, down 0.3), South Korea (32.7, down 3.2), and Hungary (34.4, down 0.5). China is joined by Italy (+3.7 to 36.0), Mexico (+2.9 to 49.0), and Saudi Arabia (+2.1 to 60.4) as the top movers. Conversely, six countries report significant decreases including Turkey, Argentina, India, South Korea, Belgium (-3.0 to 38.5), and Spain (-1.6 to 38.1).
