Charting the Global Decline in Consumer Confidence
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Charted: The Global Decline in Consumer Confidence

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2 years ago

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Declining Global Consumer Confidence in 2022

Charting the Global Decline in Consumer Confidence

Our plans to buy new things, travel, invest, and save money, all rely on one crucial factor—our ability to pay for it.

This ability in turn is dependent on not just our current savings, but our expected income and confidence in the economy, i.e. consumer confidence.

This graphic by Gilbert Fontana uses OECD data from 2019‒2022 to chart the rise and fall of consumer confidence in nine major economies.

What is Consumer Confidence?

Measured at a base value of 100, the Consumer Confidence Index takes consumers’ expectations and sentiments about their financial futures into account to indicate household consumption and saving patterns in the future.

An indicator above 100 means that there is a boost in people’s confidence towards economic prospects. This means that they are less likely to save and more inclined to spend money in the near future.

On the other hand, a value below 100 indicates that consumers are pessimistic about their economic standing in the future. This can result in them saving more and spending less.

Inflation, job losses, and expectations of a not-so-bright financial future can shake this confidence, making consumers think twice about their consumption.

Global Consumers are Becoming Pessimistic

After falling down and quickly recovering during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, consumer confidence seems to be trending downwards across the globe.

CountryConsumer Confidence (Oct 2021)Consumer Confidence (Oct 2022)
🇫🇷 France100.896.5
🇩🇪 Germany101.195.9
🇮🇹 Italy102.896.8
🇯🇵 Japan99.096.7
🇬🇧 UK100.791.6
🇺🇸 U.S.98.196.8
🇨🇳 China103.292.1* (Sept 2022)
🇦🇺 Australia100.498.0
🇰🇷 South Korea100.798.3

The UK was hit the worst as its Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) dropped down to 92 in 2022, from 100.6 in 2021. Just behind is China, which also fell to 92 in 2022 despite sitting at 103 two years prior.

The remaining countries had CCIs between 96‒98, including France, Germany, and the U.S.

Even with the most optimistic populations and a CCI of 98, South Korea and Australia, were below the ideal 100 mark and indicated pessimism.

The main culprits of this declining confidence in global economic markets including expectations of rising inflation—especially for food and gas—as well as high interest rates, the threats of a looming recession, and layoffs in major sectors.

To learn more about confidence and predictions for the upcoming year, check out Prediction Consensus: What the Experts See Coming in 2023.
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This article was published as a part of Visual Capitalist's Creator Program, which features data-driven visuals from some of our favorite Creators around the world.

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Economy

Ranked: Emerging Markets by FDI Confidence

China ranks as the top emerging economy by FDI confidence, retaining its place from 2024.

Published

1 week ago

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June 30, 2025

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This infographic ranks the top 25 emerging markets by their FDI confidence in 2025, based on a survey of global business leaders.

Ranked: Emerging Markets by FDI Confidence

This was originally posted on our Voronoi app. Download the app for free on iOS or Android and discover incredible data-driven charts from a variety of trusted sources.

Key Takeaways

  • China, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia are the top three emerging markets by FDI confidence in 2025
  • Brazil overtook India to take the fourth spot, with both countries making the top five
  • Domestic economic performance and efficiency of legal and regulatory processes were the top two priorities for FDI investors

Emerging markets often attract foreign investors with prospects for higher economic growth and diversification.

Where are global business leaders placing their foreign direct investment (FDI) bets in 2025?

This chart highlights the top 25 emerging markets by FDI confidence score in 2025, based on a survey conducted by Kearney. The rankings are drawn from responses by 536 senior executives at global companies with annual revenues above $500 million.

China Leads in Foreign Investor Sentiment

China (including Hong Kong) remains the top emerging market for foreign investor confidence in 2025. However, FDI inflows have slowed in recent years, hitting multi-year lows in 2023.

Following China, the UAE and Saudi Arabia also retain their places as the second and third-most favored developing economies for FDI.

Here’s a look at the full list of top emerging markets for FDI confidence in 2025:

RankCountryFDI Confidence Score
1China (including Hong Kong) 🇨🇳🇭🇰1.97
2United Arab Emirates 🇦🇪1.86
3Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦1.76
4Brazil 🇧🇷1.59
5India 🇮🇳1.53
6Mexico 🇲🇽1.51
7South Africa 🇿🇦1.48
8Poland 🇵🇱1.46
9Argentina 🇦🇷1.46
10Thailand 🇹🇭1.45
11Malaysia 🇲🇾1.42
12Indonesia 🇮🇩1.35
13Egypt 🇪🇬1.33
14Türkiye 🇹🇷1.33
15Chile 🇨🇱1.30
16Philippines 🇵🇭1.29
17Hungary 🇭🇺1.28
18Kuwait 🇰🇼1.28
19Vietnam 🇻🇳1.27
20Colombia 🇨🇴1.27
21Romania 🇷🇴1.24
22Bulgaria 🇧🇬1.19
23Costa Rica 🇨🇷1.19
24Peru 🇵🇪1.16
25Uruguay 🇺🇾1.15

Brazil and India—two of the biggest emerging economies by GDP—round out the top five, with Brazil overtaking India in FDI confidence in the 2025 rankings.

These rankings align with investors’ FDI priorities from the same survey, where the efficiency of legal and regulatory processes and domestic economic performance top the list.

South Africa made the largest upward move in 2025, jumping from 11th to 7th in the rankings. It also recorded FDI inflows of around $661 million in Q1 2025, up 56% from the fourth quarter of 2024.

Overall, 11 of the top 25 emerging markets for FDI confidence are in Asia and the Middle East.

What’s Driving Investor Confidence?

The factors driving FDI confidence vary for each economy.

In China, tech innovation was the leading driver of investor confidence, while economic performance ranked highest for the UAE and Saudi Arabia.

Meanwhile, the talent/skill of the labor pools in India and Mexico were the strongest factors attracting investors.

Learn More on the Voronoi App

To learn more about this topic, see how Emerging Markets Compete With the U.S. in Stock Market Returns on Voronoi, the new app from Visual Capitalist.

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