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October 30, 2014

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Consumer morale at 3-year low in October

CHINA’S consumer sentiment tumbled to a three-year low in October as consumers downgraded their outlook on employment, housing and personal finances, a private report showed yesterday.

The Westpac MNI China Consumer Sentiment Index fell 2 percent to 110.9 in October from 113.2 in September, the Australian bank and the German financial news company Market News International said in a joint report.

The drop points to sentiment barely above the record low of 110.8 seen in September 2011 and down 8.9 percent since the start of this year. While the third-quarter gross domestic product returned slightly above market hopes at 7.3 percent, it was the lowest in five years, a slowdown that was correctly presaged by this survey, the report said.

“While the Chinese authorities have been at pains to emphasize the stability in the labor market, the weakness in our employment component tells a different story and is a growing source of concern,” said Philip Uglow, chief economist of MNI Indicators.

Uglow expects more selective easing to bolster the slowing economy in the near future.

“With consumer confidence close to record lows it suggests the authorities will maintain their attempts to underpin growth via continued selective easing,” he said.

Huw McKay, Westpac’s senior international economist, shared a similar view by arguing that policies could be further eased and that “a mix of sector specific and macro-economic measures will be required.”




 

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