Ireland: Consumer confidence rises to eight-month high in February
Consumer confidence came in at 55.6 in February, up slightly from January’s 55.2. February’s result marked the best performance since June 2022.
Consumers became more upbeat about the current state of the economy and the current and future states of their personal finances. They also became more upbeat about the labor market. That said, there were some sour notes: Consumers became slightly more pessimistic about the future states of the economy and their personal spending.
The uptick in consumer sentiment may have been due to relatively warm and dry weather in February, which would have resulted in lower-than-expected heating bills. The recent easing in natural gas prices on wholesale markets may have also eased fears about high energy bills ahead.