FRIDAY, March 29, 2024
nationthailand

Consumers more confident in economy but still cautious

Consumers more confident in economy but still cautious

On the back of the Kingdom’s recovering export growth and a more positive outlook for the country’s export sector, consumer confidence increased for a second consecutive month in January, according to a survey by the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce.

Yet despite higher confidence, consumers are still spending cautiously because they are worried about the economy, the survey found.
It also found that people are still worried about flooding in the South, uncertainty about the global economy, US President Donald Trump’s policies and higher oil prices.
The Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) increased slightly from 73.7 points in December to 74.5 in January. A level below 100 reflects weak consumer sentiment.
“Actually, higher confidence should be good news for the retail industry, as consumers believe it is a good time to spend money. However, people seemed to have hesitated to spend money on new cars, new houses or travel, or to start an investment, as they are quite worried about their future incomes,” said Thanavath Phonvichai, director of the UTCC’s Economic and Business Forecasting Centre.
He said people closely monitored the country’s economic growth, with some saying they hoped there would be future growth from the government’s stimulus packages and mega-project investments.
Given the hope stemming from government investment, consumer confidence is expected to increase firmly in the second quarter, with people assured that the economy will grow by 3.5-4 per cent this year, he added.
While consumers are worried about flooding in the Southern region, the situation is not expected to affect the country’s economy seriously, with a blow of between Bt15 billion and Bt20 billion.
Based on 2,238 responses to the survey last month, the university found that other indices reflecting consumer confidence also increased slightly for the second consecutive month, including future incomes (from 90.3 points in December to 91.2 points last month), and future employment opportunities (from 68.2 to 69.1).
However, the poll found confidence in the cost of living was lower (from 74.1 to 72.5), and the “gross domestic happiness” index declined from 80.5 to 78.6 points.
The drug-problem index was down from 73.8 to 71.5 points, while the political-confidence index sank from 97.2 to 95.9 points.
 

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