The Swiss consumer confidence index unexpectedly edged up to -6 in the December quarter 2018 from -7 in the previous quarter while markets estimated -8. Consumers were more optimistic about the country's economic growth (9 vs 6 in the third quarter). Also, households believe that they will be able to save money (9 vs 6) and they adjusted their assessment on inflation downwards (56 vs 59). Meantime, consumers' expectations regarding their own budget remained subdued (-4 vs -5), while their views on anticipated unemployment worsened (38 vs 35); and the propensity for major purchases weakened (-11 vs -8). The long term average of the index is at -10. Consumer Confidence in Switzerland averaged -9.08 Index Points from 1972 until 2018, reaching an all time high of 22 Index Points in the first quarter of 2000 and a record low of -51 Index Points in the first quarter of 1991.
Consumer Confidence in Switzerland is expected to be 1.00 Index Points by the end of this quarter, according to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts expectations. Looking forward, we estimate Consumer Confidence in Switzerland to stand at 9.00 in 12 months time. In the long-term, the Switzerland Consumer Confidence is projected to trend around 5.00 Index Points in 2020, according to our econometric models.