Economic sentiment in positive territory: Survey

NielsenIQ Director – Consumer Insights Therica Miyana­deniya observed in the December edition of LMD that “optimism is on the rise again as people are settling down to some degree of normalcy”.

She added: “It’s true what they say; Sri Lankans have a very short memory span, which in some ways is remarkable as the will to pick up and get on with life is strongly embedded in the people of this nation.”

And as LMD noted: “Businesses dare to be upbeat about prospects as inflation crawls down.”

As for the state of the economy, slightly more than a fifth of business people responding to the exclusive survey carried out in the first week of November said they expect an improve­ment in the 12 months to come (up from 14% in October) and two in 10 still say that the eco­nomy will ‘stay the same’.  

And there’s optimism with regard to sales volumes despite rising prices, with 51% of executives anticipating an increase in the next 12 months compared to 45% in the previous month. 

LMD reported that there is “no significant change in executive opinion that there’s been an increase in business compared to the same time last year (29% in November and 27% in October)”. 

Positivity is also expressed by executives with regard to business prospects in the next three months – 32% (October 28%) chose the ‘will get better’ option – maybe on account of anticipated seasonal sales. 

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

The magazine’s Cover Story features Expolanka Founder and CEO Hanif Yusoof, who briefs the magazine about Sri Lanka’s logistics sector – and the need for modernisation and reform so as to achieve hub status. For the full story, log onto www.LMD.lk.