Global consumer confidence rises to highest point in sixteen months

All four sub-indices show significant gains as sentiment rises across much of Europe.

The author(s)
  • Johnny Sawyer Senior Research Manager, US, Public Affairs
  • Chris Jackson Public Affairs, US
  • James Diamond Public Affairs, US
Get in touch

Ipsos’ Global Consumer Confidence Index shows an increase of one point from last month to 47.2. Among 29 economies measured, ten show significant gains in consumer sentiment while just two show a notable decline. The global Current, Investment, and Jobs indices each rose by at least one point, and the Expectations index rose by more than half a point.

Four European countries – Poland, France, Great Britain, and the Netherlands – show a gain of at least two points in their National Index. Ahead of Turkey’s presidential election, this month’s reading is the country’s highest since August 2019. Additionally, sentiment in Israel (+2.7 points) has rebounded following last month’s decline amid large street protests.

On the other hand, sentiment is down significantly in both Brazil (-2.5) and Colombia (-2.1).

The Global Consumer Confidence Index is the average of all surveyed countries’ Overall or “National” indices. This month’s installment is based on a monthly survey of more than 21,000 adults under the age of 75 from 29 countries conducted on Ipsos’ Global Advisor online platform. This survey was fielded between April 21 and May 5, 2023.

Consumer sentiment in 29 countries

Among the 29 countries, Indonesia (64.5) holds the highest National Index score this month and remains the only country with a National Index score above 60.

Ten other countries show a National Index above the 50-point mark: Mexico (59.9), India (58.7), Thailand (55.5), Brazil (55.4), Malaysia (54.4), the Netherlands (54.1), Singapore (53.5), the United States (52.5), Australia (50.7) and Germany (50.5).

In contrast, just seven countries now show a National Index below the 40-point mark: Turkey (39.1), Chile (38.9), South Africa (38.9), Japan (38.8), South Korea (37.8), Hungary (34.6), and Argentina (32.1).

Compared to 12 months ago, South Korea (-5.8) shows the steepest drop in consumer sentiment, while Brazil (+8.9), Mexico (+8.6), and Turkey (+8.0) show the largest gains.

Trends

Ipsos’ Global Consumer Confidence Index (based on all 29 countries surveyed) currently reads at 47.2, up one point from last month. Based only on the “legacy 20 countries” tracked since March 2010, it would read at 45.0.

The Current sub-index, reflecting consumers’ perceptions of the economic climate and their current purchasing, jobs, and investment confidence, shows a gain from last month across the 29 countries of one point to 37.1. Thirteen countries show a significant month-over-month gain (at least 2 points) in their Current index, compared to only four countries that show a significant loss.  

Similarly, the Investment sub-index, indicative of consumers’ perception of the investment climate, also records a 29-country average increase of one point since last month to 39.3. Fourteen countries show a significant gain, while just five countries show significant losses

The Expectations sub-index, indicative of consumer expectations about future economic conditions, shows a slight uptick of 0.7 point and sits at 56.5. The economic outlook improves most of all in Turkey, which is up 6.5 points since last month and more than 11 points since March. In total, seven countries show significant gains in their Expectations index, and six show significant losses.

The Jobs sub-index, reflecting perceptions about jobs security and the jobs market, shows the largest increase of the sub-indices (+1.3) and sits at 57.4 this month. Similar to the Expectations index, the outlook in Turkey is up significantly for the second consecutive month. Eleven countries show significant gains in their Jobs index, while Colombia, Belgium, and Brazil are the only countries show significant losses.


About the study 

These findings are based on data from a monthly 29-country survey conducted by Ipsos on its Global Advisor online survey platform and, in India, on its IndiaBus platform. They are first reported each month by Refinitiv as the Primary Consumer Sentiment Index (PCSI).

The results are based on interviews with over 21,200 adults aged 18+ in India, 18-74 in Canada, Israel, Malaysia, South Africa, Turkey, and the United States, 20-74 in Thailand, 21-74 in Indonesia and Singapore, and 16-74 in all other countries.

The author(s)
  • Johnny Sawyer Senior Research Manager, US, Public Affairs
  • Chris Jackson Public Affairs, US
  • James Diamond Public Affairs, US

Society