Only 16% Indian households plan to invest in 2023 amid market volatility, rising rates : Axis My India Survey

As the consumer spending sentiment increases for the majority of Indian households, the investing sentiment remains low, with 78 percent of people saying that they won’t invest in 2023, according to the India Consumer Sentiment Index, a monthly analysis of consumer perception compiled by Axis My India.

The survey that covered 10,019 people across India, including 70 percent from the rural areas and 30 percent from urban, shows that only 16 percent of the Indians said they will invest their money in 2023. This comes amidst the volatility in the equity market and the rising interest rate scenario in the country, due to global fears of inflation and recession.

The January report, exclusively accessed by Moneycontrol, shows that 5 percent of people still remain unsure about whether they want to enter the investing market this year or not.

Children’s education top financial goal

Child education remains the most prioritised goal for most Indians, with 34 percent of the surveyed saving their money towards this financial goal. Saving for marriage remains the biggest financial goal for 14 percent of the people, followed by buying a house and building an emergency fund for 8 percent of those surveyed.

While asset allocation largely depends on one’s short-term and long-term goals, a sizeable 27 percent of the people surveyed said they have no financial goals for 2023.

Most people want to invest in financial assets

About 40 percent of those surveyed said they would invest in financial assets like mutual funds, insurance, stock markets and gold.
While 16 percent would still like to stick to real estate investment, 30 percent were either unsure about their investment instruments or won’t invest their money at all.

Interestingly, while the net score for overall consumer sentiments has gone up one-point, from 7 to 8, this month, the idea to save more still resonates for about 30 percent of the people this year even as 9 percent said they want to inculcate good financial habits as a new year resolution for 2023.