In October there was the biggest drop in consumer confidence

The Consumer Confidence Index (ICC) reached the lowest level of 2022 in October. According to Fedesarrollo, it stood at -19.5%, 8.0 percentage points less compared to September.

(Minimum wage: the increase for 2023 could be between 13% and 18%).

According to the results of the Consumer Opinion Survey (EOC), the drop in confidence compared to September 2022 was due to a decrease in both the Consumer Expectations Index (IEC) and the Economic Conditions Index (ICE) .

First, the Consumer Expectations Index (IEC) stood at -7.3%, with a decrease of 8.9 pps compared to the previous monthwhen it was at 1.6% and in October of last year it was at 10.6%.

For its part, the Economic Conditions Index stood at -37.9%, above the figure for September of -31.1% and that of October last year when it was at -19.2%.
Commenting on the results, Luis Fernando Mejía, director of that study center, said that today there is more pessimism than optimism for the coming months and among the causes, he cited global uncertainty and signs of a slowdown in economic activity.

(Ecopetrol, with pre-covid production and net income of $26.6 billion).

Regarding the willingness of consumers to buy durable goods, the ICC stood at -47.4% so far in the quarter, a result that represents a drop of 3.4 pps relative to the balance registered in the third quarter of 2022.

By cities, in October, the ICC it decreased in Bogotá (-17.1), Medellín (-31.3), Cali (-20.2), Bucaramanga (-24.2) and Barranquilla (-7.2), compared to September 2022.
Compared to the previous month, the ICC had a decrease of 9.6 pps in Medellín, 3.1 pps in Bucaramanga, 5.3 in Bogotá, 13.4 pps in Cali and 19.9 pps in Barranquilla.

Regarding the behavior of the Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) by socioeconomic strata, the deepest fall was registered in the high level with -36.7.

In September it was -30.3% and in October 2021 it reached 10.1%. For its part, in the middle stratum the Consumer Confidence Index was -17.9 and in the immediately previous month it was -10.1. In October of last year it was at -0.8.

Finally, in the case of people with a socioeconomic level below the ICC, it was -19.1 for last October. In September it reached -11.1 and in October of last year it was -3.4.

As for the mood to buy a home, a drop of 5.5 pps compared to last month (-31.1%) was detected.

According to the Fedesarrollo report, this provision increased only in the city of Bogotá (4.3 pps), while it fell in the other cities analyzed: Barranquilla (-23.3 pps), Cali (-14.1 pps), Medellín (-20.3 pps) and Bucaramanga (-17.7 pps).

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