The survey, which measures consumer sentiment across major provinces, regions and municipalities in China showed confidence varied among different cities, with Shanghai and Guangzhou remaining upbeat, but confidence in Beijing declining.
China’s small and medium cities generally experienced an improvement in consumer sentiment, according to the survey.
The survey also revealed inflation expectation has declined, with respondents now predicting China’s price level to rise four per cent compared to an expectation of 5.2 per cent in January.
ANZ greater China chief economist Li-Gang Liu said the May survey results indicate consumer confidence may be stabilising, which could mean an improvement in China’s retail sales.
“However, a further decline in inflation expectation suggests that domestic demand remains lukewarm,” said Mr Liu.
“This suggests that the retail sales figure in May will not see a significant boost, either.”
This is the first set of results released by the ANZ-Roy Morgan China Consumer Confidence Survey which was launched yesterday.
ANZ chief executive officer Mike Smith said the survey will become an important measure as China moves to an economy led by consumption.
“ANZ’s strategy in China is aligned with this shifting paradigm and we believe this index will bring significant value to our global customer base, which is paying increasing attention to China’s goods and services sector,” he said.
ANZ chief economist Warren Hogan said the index provides a real-time indication of China’s domestic demand, helping “policymakers, business and financial markets to better assess economic conditions”.
“With this launch we are also releasing an analysis of longer-term trends for the household sector and consumption in China,” said Mr Hogan.
