Economic sentiment deteriorates – Survey

Saturday, 3 October 2020 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The latest LMD-Nielsen Business Confidence Index (BCI) survey reveals that sentiment surrounding the economy declined in September with 48% of those polled saying it will improve in the next 12 months – down from 56% in August.

Additionally, almost four in 10 of those consulted by Nielsen expect economic conditions to remain the same during this period while 13% believe a deterioration is likely. Meanwhile, the outlook for business prospects in the long term has remained largely the same with about two-thirds of respondents stating sales volumes will increase in the coming 12 months.

When it comes to short-term prospects, only 3% of businesspeople feel sales volumes will increase in the next three months compared to 52% in August.

However, a majority (49%) believe sales will remain the same while 14% expect a decline.

As for the investment climate, less than a fifth of corporate executives view it favourably (versus 21% in August). Furthermore, 38% of those surveyed do not believe that this is a good time to invest while 45% consider the investment climate to be ‘fair.’

The publisher of LMD, Media Services, says the October edition of the magazine has been released. Its digital edition is also available on WhatsApp and the publisher’s social media platforms.

Its Cover Story features an exclusive interview with the Chairman of the Colombo Stock Exchange (CSE) Dumith Fernando, in which he discusses current developments, the state of the nation and plans for the capital market while conveying a note of cautious optimism about the future investment landscape in Sri Lanka (for the full story, log onto www.LMD.lk).