Bloomberg Línea — Hispanic consumer confidence in the US economy has fallen during the first quarter of 2023, compared to the previous quarter, according to the Hispanic Consumer Sentiment Index (HCSI) survey - conducted by the Florida Atlantic University Business and Economics Polling Initiative (FAU BEPI).
The survey shows that confidence in the economy among Hispanics declined from 85.3% in the fourth quarter of 2022 to 80.2% in the first quarter of 2023. Although when compared to the third quarter of last year, confidence has increased 5.9 percentage points, from 74.3%.
The measure of declining optimism regarding the US economy was obtained based on five questions that make up the index, and which was compared to the results of the last quarter of 2022.
Hispanic consumer sentiment
In all economic-related questions, Hispanics were less optimistic during the first quarter of 2023 compared to the previous quarter, except for the perception that they “will be better off next year” (76% vs. 72%).
Meanwhile, when asked if they are better off financially than a year ago, 54% responded positively compared to 59% during the previous period.
Something similar, although more marked, occurred with respect to the perception of the economic outlook in the short term, with 47% of Hispanics saying they expect the country as a whole to experience good business conditions in the next year compared to 56% in the fourth quarter of 2022.
As for the longer term, Hispanics are slightly less optimistic in the first quarter of 2023 (50%) compared to the fourth quarter of 2022 (53%).
The index also measured hard facts such as the purchase of big-ticket items. In Q1 2022, 37% of Hispanics thought it was a good time to purchase them, compared to 45% in Q4 2022.
“Hispanics account for billions of dollars in consumer spending in the United States. Yet they have been more affected by inflation and COVID-19 than other consumer populations, explained Monica Escaleras, PhD, director of FAU BEPI at the School of Business, in a press release.
