Published on October 26, 2012

New Decrease in Consumer Confidence in Québec and Canada

According to the Conference Board of Canada, the overall consumer confidence index among Québec consumers decreased in October 2012 compared to the previous month. After having increased by 7.8 points in September, the Index registered a 4.9-point decrease to reach 73.6 in October 2012. Moreover, the proportion of Quebecers who felt that it was a good time to make a major purchase, such as a property, also decreased in October (-3.7 percentage points) to reach 46.2 per cent (see chart below).

In Canada, the overall consumer confidence index decreased slightly in October (-1.1 points compared to the previous month) and now stands at 81.1 points. The proportion of Canadians who felt that it was a good time to make a major purchase fell by 2.6 percentage points to reach 40.3 per cent.

Source: Conference Board of Canada

Details About the Index of Consumer Confidence

The Index of Consumer Confidence is measured by the Conference Board of Canada, which, every month, conducts a survey among Canadian households. As its name implies, the Index measures consumers’ level of optimism regarding the economy. The survey consists of four questions: the first two questions focus on respondents’ perception of their current and future financial situation; the third question concerns respondents’ perception about the short-term employment outlook; and the fourth question measures the proportion of households who think that the time is right to make a major purchase, such as a property or other big-ticket item.

Every month, the Conference Board publishes – for Canada and for each province – a global index (with a base year of 2002) and the four sub-indexes.

The Index of Consumer Confidence and the Resale Market in Québec

Québec‘s resale market is most sensitive to the evolution of the sub-index that measures the proportion of Québec households that feel the time is right to make a major purchase, such as a property. This sub-index is a contemporary and direct indicator of activity on the Québec resale market.