Ukraine’s consumers greeted the second month of Summer 2010 with an 8.1pp plunge in the Consumer Confidence Index (CCI), which fell to 86.4. This is the second month that this downward trend in the consumer mood has been seen, after three quarters of steady improvement. The drop in the CCI in July 2010 was the result of worsening economic expectations, as the IEE plunged 12.6pp to a once-again pessimistic 90.1, after hovering between neutral and optimistic. Read the report here.
"The government’s plans are spoiling consumer confidence in Ukraine. Ukraine’s consumers greeted the second month of summer 2010 with an 8.1 percentage point plunge in the Consumer Confidence Index (CCI), which fell to 86.4 percentage points. This is the second month that this downward trend in consumer confidence has been seen, after three quarters of steady improvement," reads the press release.
According to the ICPS, negative evaluations of the prospects for Ukraine’s economy also affected consumers’ expectations regarding inflation and unemployment trends.
"The government’s plans to institute a series of unpopular reforms, especially to raise rates for energy and increase the retirement age have been received rather coldly by most Ukrainians, although the pressure to do so is the result of revived cooperation with the IMF. At the same time, a slowdown in the economic revival, coupled with a heatwave that has been threatening this year’s grain harvest, has caused Ukraine’s consumers to feel more pessimistic about economic prospects," ICPS Social Economy Program Manager Maksym Boroda said.
In Ukraine, the Consumer Confidence Index is determined through a random survey of domestic households. The poll involves 1,000 individuals aged 15-59, an age group that represents 61.3% of Ukraine’s population and the country’s most active consumers.
GfK Ukraine is a Ukrainian research company, offering a comprehensive range of survey services and market research in Ukraine, Moldova and Belarus. GfK Ukraine is a member of the worldwide GfK Group, which is the No. 4 market research organization worldwide. The Group has 115 companies covering over 100 countries.
The International Centre for Policy Studies is an independent research organization whose mission is to introduce public policy concepts and procedures in Ukraine. ICPS focuses on key programs of importance for the reform efforts of the Ukrainian government.
