Irish consumer sentiment improved to its best level in twelve months in March, research showed.
According to the latest KBC Bank Ireland Consumer Sentiment Index, this hints at an increasing sense of economic and financial resilience to COVID-19 on the part of Irish consumers.
The concentration of gains in the forward-looking elements of the survey probably reflects a sense of emerging light in a still dark tunnel amid hopes that the roll-out of vaccines will deliver notably healthier domestic economic conditions later this year, the report showed.
"Increased consumer confidence in March was driven by a further easing in concerns about the outlook for the Irish economy and jobs likely prompted by positive economic data and the promise of increased vaccinations," said Austin Huges of KBC
"However, consumers remain cautious about their own financial circumstances and are correspondingly careful in their spending plans," he added.
Permanently Higher Savings
A special question in the March sentiment survey also suggests the likelihood of a tendency towards permanently higher savings in the aftermath of the pandemic that may limit the extent of an re-opening rebound in consumer spending.
The survey showed marked differences in consumers capacity to build savings that saw these concentrated towards higher income consumers also emphasise the uneven distribution of pandemic impacts across the economy.
© 2021 Checkout – your source for the latest Irish retail news. Article by Donna Ahern. Click sign up to subscribe to Checkout.
