RBI launches latest surveys on consumer confidence, inflation expectations

The Reserve Bank has launched the latest round of surveys to capture consumer confidence and inflation expectations of households, which are useful inputs for its monetary policy.

The central bank has been regularly conducting Consumer Confidence Survey and Inflation Expectations Survey of Households (IESH).

The results of these surveys "provide useful inputs for monetary policy", the RBI said while announcing the launch of the November 2020 round of CCS and IESH through two statements.

The next meeting of the RBI Governor-headed Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is scheduled for December 2 to 4, 2020.

The consumer confidence survey seeks qualitative responses from households regarding their sentiments on general economic situation, employment scenario, price level, households' income and spending.

The survey is conducted regularly in 13 cities -- Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Bhopal, Chennai, Delhi, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Patna and Thiruvananthapuram. It covers about 5,400 respondents across these cities.

The IESH is conducted to capture subjective assessments on price movements and inflation of about 6,000 households, based on their individual consumption baskets, across 18 cities.

The cities include Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chandigarh, Delhi, Guwahati, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai and Thiruvananthapuram.

The IESH seeks "qualitative responses" from households on price changes (general prices as well as prices of specific product groups) in the three months ahead as well as in the one year ahead period and quantitative responses on current, three months ahead and one year ahead inflation rates, the RBI said.

The studies will be conducted by a Mumbai-based agency on behalf of the RBI through face-to-face as well as telephonic modes, in view of the phase-wise resumption of activities.