Financial and Technology News

Confidence in economy weakens on jobs, wages

 2018/05/14
Sentiment toward the economy weakened this month, as investors turned cautious about the job market and a possible increase in wages, a survey released by Cathay Financial Holding Co showed.
 
According to the survey, 39.7 percent of respondents said economic fundamentals deteriorated from six months earlier, while 22.9 percent said the economy improved during the period.
 
The figures sent the economic optimism index to minus-16.8, reflecting the difference between pessimistic and optimistic respondents, compared with minus-12.8 last month.
 
The economic optimism index for the next six months also fell from minus-17.6 to minus-20.8, the survey found.
 
The indices fell for the second consecutive month to a one-year low due to a cautious attitude toward the job market and wage increases, Cathay Financial said.
 
The optimism index toward the job market over the next six months fell from minus-24 last month to minus-28.5 this month and the index toward possible wage increases over the next six months fell from 3.3 to 0.5 over the period, it said.
 
The optimism index toward the local stock mAarket this month dropped to minus-19.4 from minus-16.4 last month, as the TAIEX has been in consolidation mode, Cathay Financial said.
 
The index measuring equity investors’ risk appetite fell for the third consecutive month to minus-4.2 from last month’s minus-2.7, it said.
 
The index gauging the willingness to buy big-ticket items this month rose slightly to 3.9 from 3 last month, while the index assessing the willingness to buy durable goods also inched up from minus-16.9 to minus-16.8, it said.
 
About 70.2 percent of respondents said they expect the local economy to grow at a pace of more than 2 percent this year, down from 72.2 percent last month, and they forecast average economic growth of 2.16 percent, below the government’s forecast of 2.42 percent, Cathay Financial said.
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