New Delhi: Consumer sentiment has nosedived by 7.3 percentage points in January 2020, according to the latest India Primary Consumer Sentiment Index (PCSI), as measured by Thomson Reuters, in partnership with Ipsos.
The major cause for this pessimism is the depleting confidence around personal spends and investments. Even confidence about the economy is low, though confidence around jobs has slightly moved up.
"Inflation and prices of essential commodities have been going up due to the US-Iran standoff and uncertainty around the US-China trade war. It has jacked up oil prices and the cost of living. Also around this time, IT planning is a strain on incomes.
Additionally, global slowdown has impacted India's economic growth as well, as economies are becoming increasingly interdependent," says Amit Adarkar, India CEO & APAC Operations Director, Ipsos.
The monthly PCSI, which is driven by the aggregation of the four weighted sub-indices, has plummeted for at least 3 of the 4 sub indices. The four sub-indices are: Current Conditions Index; Expectations Index; Investment Index; and Jobs Index.
While the PCSI Employment Confidence Sub-Index has slightly moved upwards by 0.5 percentage points, the PCSI Economic Expectations Sub Index, has significantly declined by 5.1 percentage points.
The PCSI Investment Climate Sub-Index has plunged by 12.9 percentage points; and the PCSI Current Personal Financial Conditions Sub-Index has also majorly dropped by 12.5 percentage points, over last month.
