Rate Hikes Dampen Consumer Outlook For 2023

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) revealed that higher inflation, higher interest rates, a weaker peso, and lower demand for products and services weakened optimism for companies and consumers alike for the first quarter of 2023.

For consumers, expectations of faster increases in the prices of goods, low income, higher household expenses, and job availability have diminished.

According to the Consumer Expectations Survey (CES), there was a lower consumer confidence index (CI) based on the given indicators for consumer expectations.

However, households are still expected to spend on goods and services in the first quarter of 2023, with the CI increasing to 39.1% from 35.5%.

“This suggests that more respondents may increase their consumption of basic goods and services over the next three months,” the BSP said.

Meanwhile, the consumer sentiment on buying big-ticket items declined for the next 12 months, with a CI of -74.7% from 72.6%.

Source: Inquirer.net