Market research company Ipsos launched its most recent report, “Global Inflation Monitor”, for which it surveyed more than 23,000 people to find out how they evaluate their financial situation, in addition to their expectations and Much of the world apart from knowing worries about the continued rise in inflation.
How do you feel right now
There is a sense of resignation around the world, as 46% believe it will take more than 12 months for inflation to return to normal in their country, and another 19% think “it will never happen”. Chileans fared slightly better than the global average (47%) who believe it will take more than a year for inflation to stabilize, while 43% believe it will happen within the next year. In this last aspect, Chile is more optimistic than countries such as Great Britain, France, Canada or the United States.
On the other hand, 47% of Chileans believe the country is in recession, while 22% believe it is not. South Korea and Hungary are the countries where the most people say they are in a recession, with 79% and 78% respectively. In Latin America, the countries in which most respondents believe they are in this situation are Peru (50%), Colombia, Argentina and Chile (47%), while Mexico and Brazil (37%) More optimistic about the situation.
Regarding their personal financial situation, 6% of Chileans say they live comfortably, 11% believe they are doing well, 27% believe they have enough, 32% say it’s hard for them, and 19% say they make it too hard. In this question, Chilean respondents are among those who rate their personal situation the worst: Chile ranks as the second country where more people say they are facing financial difficulties (51% ), and a third where fewer people say they are living comfortably or that they are doing well (17%).
Jean-Christophe Salles, LATAM CEO of Ipsos, announced that “more than 50% of Chileans said that nowadays it is difficult or very difficult for them to manage their finances. The worst result in the world, followed only by Argentina. This Undoubtedly affected by high inflation, for which more than half of Chileans (58%) think that it will take more than 12 months or that it will never return to normal.
“Now in parallel, a third (30%) think that their disposable income will increase somewhat/much in the next year. Thus, we can divide the Chilean population into two parts: the two thirds who have a hard time and the one improving. do not experience symptoms, and a third who do expect significant improvement in the next six months.
Not high hopes? next 12 months
63% of Chileans believe that the rate of inflation will increase in the next year, while 67% believe that the number of unemployed in the country will increase. Despite these figures, both indicators decreased since the study’s last measurement in November 2022, when 73% of Chileans thought inflation would rise, and 75% thought the same about unemployment.
Spending expectations
When asked about expectations for household expenses for the next six months, the items that Chileans anticipate will increase the most are the cost of purchasing food and fuel (with both at 73%), the cost of servicing utilities such as water or electricity (72%), and the cost of other household purchases (69%). In all of these aspects, our country is above the global average, and is also the fourth country in the study where more people expect fuel prices to rise, behind only Argentina (83%), Colombia (81%) and South Africa are behind. 78%).
Nearly three out of five Chileans (58%) think the value of their mortgage or lease will increase, and half (51%) believe social and recreational outlets such as cinemas, cafeterias, restaurants, bars and clubs will increase. Prices will rise where Chileans least expect an increase in the cost of subscriptions, such as streaming or gym platforms, where less than half (48%) believe prices will rise in the coming months.
Why are prices rising?
Regarding what has been the main reason for the rise in prices, 73% of Chileans believe it has been a product of the state of the global economy, while the same percentage believe it is due to the level of interest rates. , and a whopping 67% think it is due to government policies. Other explanations cited by people are the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic (65%) and highly profitable companies (63%).
Compared to the global average, Chileans are more likely to attribute rising prices to the pandemic (65% versus 56%) and immigration (63% versus 50%), while Russians are more likely to attribute the invasion of Ukraine as a cause of inflation. are less inclined to (55% vs. 64%).
