Results for last month reveal that overall, the Maltese were more pessimistic when compared to February. The consumer confidence index stood at -0.9 points and had fallen again in negative territory meaning that in balance, respondents are more pessimistic. The consumer confidence index has been deteriorating for the past 3 months after peaking in December, possibly due to the local situation with Covid-19.

March

Detailed findings from the survey questions are:

  • The general economic perception of respondents for the previous 12 months has decreased slightly in March 2021. Furthermore, respondents indicated that they expect the general economic outlook for the next 12 months to deteriorate significantly when compared to February.
  • The measure of people’s assessment of their financial situation over the past 12 months declined to -14.40 from -10.80 in February. In terms of their future expectations of personal finances, it transpires that respondents in general were slightly less positive with the sub-index decreasing to 1.75 from 4.15.
  • In addition, the expected change in spending on major purchases (like furniture and electrical/electronic devices) over the next 12 months when compared to the previous 12 months continued to get worse.
  • More respondents perceived higher unemployment for the next 12 months when compared to February’s results. Nevertheless, respondents perceive they will be able to save more in their outlook for the coming 12 months when compared to the previous month.

In spite of this scenario, Malta’s consumer confidence index fared better than the EU which stood at −12.1 points and Euro area at −10.8 points.

It is important to point out that the survey requests the respondents’ perception of the current situation.  However, the actual situation may differ from this perception.

For further information on the consumer sentiment survey, kindly email info@emcs.com.mt or phone +356 2777 2777.

EMCS conducts this research on a monthly basis for the European Commission. 
The study is based on a random sample of 1000 telephone surveys.