In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and the lift on border closures, consumers were slightly less pessimistic as the consumer confidence index nudges upward to 92, up 0.3 index point, during the second quarter of 2020. While consumers reported being more positive about their household’s financial situation, concerns about their personal health remained.
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By the end of the second quarter, top of mind consumer concerns were the economic conditions (88%) and the financial position of the government (85%), followed by their job security (77%). More than two-thirds of consumers (69%) indicated that they are still worried about their personal health, whereas 72% of consumers reported that they do not have trouble in meeting their basic needs. Most consumers perceived their household’s financial situation (55%) to worsen, although this perception decreased from the previous quarter (66%).
During the second quarter of 2020, the present situation index measured 90.6, while the future expectation index rate 93.3, up from 92.3 in the previous quarter. In comparison to the first quarter, consumers were slightly more optimistic about the future. Nevertheless, almost 80% of consumers expected the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic to last for at least 9 months. During the second quarter, 81% of consumers reported that buying a car was not suitable. Close to 78% of consumers indicated that taking out a loan or going on a vacation was not appropriate, while only about 18% of consumers considered purchasing a household appliance. Consequently, the consumer purchasing habit index stood at 92 inching up by 0.4 index point in the second quarter.
More information on the Consumer Confidence survey is available on the website of the CBA (https://www.cbaruba.org/).
