MNI India Consumer Sentiment rises marginally in August

The MNI India Consumer Sentiment Indicator, a measure of the buyers' perception about market conditions, rose marginally in August to 119.1 points from 118.6 in July, marking first improvement in the last four months.

The research stated that consumers reported a small improvement in their personal financial situation and in their willingness to purchase big-ticket items probably due to a decline in retail price inflation.

There was also a rise in satisfaction with the current level of prices in August and a reduction in inflation expectations for next 12 months, the finding said.

"The Reserve Bank of India's more accommodative policy stance has helped to stabilise consumer sentiment following the trend decline in 2014. While there are a few positives on the outlook for employment and business conditions, confidence is still bumping along at a lower level compared with last year," said Philip Uglow, chief economist at MNI Indicators, in a statement.

The economist also said that another cut in interest rate was likely and supported the claim citing a relatively subdued level of consumer confidence, continued weak business confidence (as per another survey) and low levels of inflation.

"A growing proportion of consumers anticipated prices will rise by 5 percent -- a change in attitude from previous months when respondents had much higher inflation expectations," the statement said.

The Current Business Conditions Indicator rose to 111 surpassing the out-turn in August 2014 while the indicator for Business Conditions in One Year was 2.5 percent above the level seen at the start of the year.

Also, with job-seekers optimistic about the job market in the coming 12 months, the Employment Outlook Indicator rose to the highest level in August this year since May 2013.

The research, conducted over telephone on 1,000 individuals each month, follows a similar methodology to the University of Michigan survey of US consumer sentiment.