74% of consumers are concerned about rising prices for everyday items, according to Deloitte Ireland’s latest consumer tracker survey.
Over half of respondents said they believe the cost of groceries have gone up over the last month, while 46% think prices in restaurants have risen.
Overall, the survey reveals that consumers’ financial concerns have increased slightly since the previous wave of research.
53% said they are concerned about their level of savings – up 2% on the previous survey.
Almost half of consumers said they plan to delay large purchases – up 4%, while 24% are concerned about making upcoming payments- up 2%.
However, nearly half of consumers in Ireland feel optimistic that their financial situation will improve within the next three years, just slightly less than the global average.
Remote working
Meanwhile, the Deloitte report reveals that people in Ireland are working from home on average 3.55 days per week, which is higher than the global average of 2.7 days per week.
That’s despite the phased return to offices, which was introduced in Ireland during the second half of September and was in place up to this past week.
In relation to work-life balance, 67% said they are prioritising work-life balance more now than they were a year ago.
“The continued take-up of working from home among the Irish workforce, even as office access was available again up to last week, is quite striking,” said Daniel Murray, Partner and Head of Consumer at Deloitte Ireland.
“It illustrates the need for companies to continue to be flexible about their approach to remote working into the future,” he said.
Article Source – Over 70% worried about rising prices of everyday items – RTE – Gill Stedman