Julien Manceaux, senior economist at ING, points out that the French consumer confidence index plummeted to 86.7, which is the lowest level since October 2014 and adding to the pile of horrific indicators published for the end of 2018.
Key Quotes
“The large drop in purchasing intentions noted in November continued in December, with intentions reaching their lowest level since June 2013. The second largest changes in the survey were noted in households’ sentiment about their ability to save which has been restored in the first half of 2018.”
“Finally, even though unemployment continued to decline in recent months, fears of unemployment, which made a two-year jump back in time in November – continued to increase in December, although the rise was limited.”
“The survey, therefore, shows an abnormal level of anxiety among French consumers: their sentiment about the economic outlook is now worse than at any point in 2008 and 2009, while the current economic slowdown has nothing in common with what was seen at the time – and this high level of anxiety will have a lasting impact.”
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