Colombia: Consumers turn less pessimistic in December
Consumers turned less pessimistic in December, with the Fedesarrollo consumer confidence index rising to minus 9.5 from minus 14.4 in November and marking the best reading in five months. The index, thus moved closer to the critical zero-threshold separating pessimism and optimism among consumers, signaling a deterioration in sentiment.
December’s upturn was largely driven by a marked improvement in consumers’ outlook over their personal finances in the year ahead. Meanwhile, households’ assessment of the general economic conditions in the coming 12 months as well as their appraisal of their own financial situation a year ago both turned less pessimistic. On the other hand, consumers’ willingness to purchase big-ticket items deteriorated in December.