Jul 27, 2023
July consumer confidence rebounds amidst inflation concerns
Despite a promising moderation in inflation, the rising cost of living remains a concerning factor, says the Conference Board of Canada. Its Index of Consumer Confidence rose 5.5 points to 73.6 in July after dropping sharply the previous month, a noteworthy upswing.
Respondents demonstrated a more positive perception of their current financial situation in July. An increase of 0.8 percentage points resulted in 13.2% of consumers believing their finances had improved. Conversely, the proportion of individuals perceiving their finances to be unchanged declined slightly by 0.1 percentage points, though it still constituted the majority at 51.4%. Meanwhile, the number of respondents who considered their financial situation to have worsened also decreased by 0.3 percentage points, settling at 32.%.
Outlooks on major purchases deteriorated further in July. There was an increase of 0.2 percentage points to bring the proportion of Canadian consumers who considered it a good time for major purchases to 10.4%. However, this was overshadowed by a more substantial 1.3 percentage point rise in the proportion of individuals who believed it was a bad time for major purchases to 68.1%.
Regarding future financial outlooks, there was a moderation in optimism. The percentage of respondents expecting an improvement in their finances fell by 0.4 points, while those anticipating a decline reduced by 2.4 percentage points.
The Board says future job prospects improved for the month. The proportion of respondents who believed there would be more job opportunities increased by 1.4 percentage points to reach 12.6%. Likewise, the proportion of those anticipating the same number of jobs rose by 1.8 percentage points, reaching 54.6%. In contrast, the percentage of individuals expecting a decrease in job opportunities dropped to 20.3%, reflecting a decline of 2.9 percentage points.


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