Finland Times

 

Consumer confidence indicator (CCI). Source: Consumer Survey 2015, May. Statistics Finland.

Consumers’ confidence in the economy improved further in May with the indicator at 15.5, which was 11.4 in April and 11.2 in March.

 

The long-term average for the confidence indicator is 11.9, according to the data based on Statistics Finland’s Consumer Survey, for which 1,315 people resident in Finland were interviewed between 4 and 19 May.

 

Confidence in the economy has last been this strong in the spring of 2011. In last year’s May the consumer confidence indicator received the value 8.7.

 

Of the four components of the consumer confidence indicator, views concerning Finland’s economy, general unemployment development and households' saving possibilities improved in May compared to April.

 

Views on one’s own economy, in contrast, weakened slightly. Despite the improvement, consumers’ views on unemployment were still relatively gloomy, while views concerning Finland’s economy were the brightest in May since February 2011.

 

In May, consumers regarded the time more favourable for raising a loan than for buying durable goods or, in particular, saving, the data show.

 

In May, employed consumers felt personally more threatened by unemployment than in April. During the time, 42 per cent of consumers believed that Finland’s economic situation would improve in the coming twelve months, while 17 per cent of them thought that the country’s economy would deteriorate.

 

Consumers' expectations concerning their own and Finland's economy in 12 months' time. Source: Consumer Survey 2015, May. Statistics Finland.

In April, the respective proportions were 33 and 21 per cent and twelve months ago, in May, 34 and 24 per cent.

 

In all, 27 per cent of consumers believed in May that their own economy would improve and 13 per cent of them feared it would worsen over the year. Twelve months earlier the corresponding proportions were 22 and 14 per cent.

 

Altogether 36 per cent of consumers thought in May that unemployment would increase over the year, and 26 per cent of them believed it would decrease.

 

In April, the respective proportions were 42 and 20 per cent and twelve months ago 47 and 18 per cent respectively.

 

Twenty-four per cent of employed persons reckoned in May that their personal threat of unemployment had grown over the past few months, while ten per cent thought it had lessened. Twenty-three per cent of employed persons felt that they were not threatened by unemployment at all.

 

Consumers estimated in May that consumer prices would go up by 1.2 per cent over the next 12 months. In May 2014, the predicted inflation rate was 2.6 per cent, and its long-term average is 2.2 per cent.

 

In May, 47 per cent of consumers thought the time was favourable for buying durable goods. Seventeen per cent of households were fairly or very certain to buy a car and only six per cent a dwelling during the next 12 months.

 

Nineteen per cent of households were planning to spend money on renovating their dwelling within a year.

 

A total of 52 per cent of the consumers considered saving worthwhile in May. In all, 64 per cent of households had been able to lay aside some money and 80 per cent believed they would be able to do so during the next 12 months.