Upswing in consumer and investor confidence in city

Shanghai's consumer confidence extended moderate growth in the second quarter while investor confidence bounced back from earlier retreat, according to a survey released on Tuesday.

The Shanghai University of Finance and Economics' quarterly Consumer Confidence in Shanghai Index rose 0.9 points from the first quarter to 121.8 points for this year's April-June period, 1.7 points higher than a year earlier.

The university's Index of Investor Confidence, meanwhile, rebounded to 125.54 points, up 7 points from the previous quarter and 10.05 points higher than the same period last year.

For both indexes, a reading above 100 signifies optimism while below indicates pessimism.

The stronger consumer confidence was mainly due to stable second-quarter economic development both nationally and in the city, said Xu Guoxiang, director of the university's Applied Statistics Research Center.

It highlighted the sub-index for consumers' evaluation of earnings, which rose 1 point from the first three months to 121.5 points, a surge of 14.3 points from a year earlier, indicating a rapid improvement in consumer satisfaction with income compared with the period when the pandemic was just starting to stabilize. 

The 120-point employment index, down 1.3 points from the previous quarter and up 2.7 points from the same period last year, remains at a high level, bearing witness to a gradual recovery in consumer evaluations of the employment situation.

A sub-index of purchase intentions dipped 1.5 points from the previous quarter to 92.9 points, among which, however, the index of home-buying intentions jumped 7.1 points from the first quarter to 84.1 points, the highest level since the inception of the research.

It showed a series of measures to control housing prices in Shanghai have achieved remarkable results, and consumers are more willing to buy houses.

The intention to buy cars, meanwhile, was slightly lower than the previous quarter and the same period of last year. The intention to buy bulky durable goods was also down, shrinking by 7.3 points in April-June from the first quarter. 

The quarter-on-quarter declines in these two indicators were the major factors dragging down the comprehensive purchase intention index, and indicated consumers were still wary of purchasing, according to Xu.

The surge in the investor index presented a much more positive attitude.

In the first half of this year, pandemic prevention and control as well as economic social development were pushed forward and made progress. The gradual implementation of supportive policies, such as those reducing taxes and fees, encouraging innovation, and promoting consumption and financial support, will drive steady economic growth, and the rebound in consumption is expected to accelerate, according to Xu and Chang Ning, a professor at the university's school of statistics and management.

At the same time, as vaccinations are increasing, countries are competing to implement policies stimulating development, and foreign trade is expected to steadily pick up to form a stable support mechanism for China's economic growth.