RSS FeedConsumer Confidence Takes A Nosedive Worldwide
Posted by Senan
We all love reports! Well maybe not, but the past week has seen several consumer data reports release that put paid to the suggestion that we are climbing gracefully out of recession. In the U.S., a company called The Conference Board released it's report indicating consumer confidence fell to 46 points in February (55 was expected - on a scale of 1 to 100). In a survey (Ifo index) of 7000 businesses, German confidence also took a hit, down for the first time in 10. Then today Pascal Lamy of the World Trade Organisation highlighted that world trade had fallen 12% in the past year...the worst fall since 1945, the year World War 2 ended.
Well covered in the media also over the past weeks has been the pressure the U.K. in under with it's monetary policy. The cost of borrowing for the country has increased accordingly. And Spain's budget deficit has soared to 10% of gross domestic product. An acquaintance of mine bought a property in Spain a few weeks ago, and they don't necessarily have the spare cash to do so. When I found out I let them know in no uncertain terms that I think they've completely lost their marbles!
But wahooo!, myhome.ie has reported a big increase in homes going to 'Sale Agreed'. Pardon me if I don't crack open the champagne just yet. Over the past 12 months around my part of the woods I saw plenty of houses going to 'Sale Agreed' only to go back to 'For Sale' a short few months later. The problem of bank liquidity has not gone away. The unemployment problem has not gone away. I suspect what we are seeing is a seasonal jump. The property sections are back in the Sunday papers and so maybe a few tired souls are sick of waiting on the sidelines and have decided to take the leap. Whatever, as long as our fundamentals remain in the mire, there won't be a sustainable bounce in anything (be it property, shares, employment, salaries, sunny weather, ...) for a while.
On a cheerier note, the snow is back!
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