October: month of billionaire spending on consumption by Colombian households

To what extent the so-called “New normal” It has had an impact on the change in behavior of Colombians, it is reflected in the spending trend reflected in last October, when the deconfinement measures were effective in the national territory.

According to the study carried out by the consultancy Raddar, Colombian households spent $ 61.5 billion pesos, an unprecedented figure if it is compared with the performance of September 2020, and even with the record of the immediately previous year: 3.25% compared to the first indicator and 1.44% higher than October 2019.

The reason? Apparently, citizens went out to buy in shopping malls, department stores and stores, but prioritizing purchases in the face of uncertainty related to the pandemic. For Raddar, expenditure is an indicator of economic recovery that allows us to follow the behavior of two variables linked to each other: credit and employment.

According to the consultant, the drop in loan applications in the last month has to do with the recovery of purchasing power linked to the activation of employment. Thus, citizens, having more resources, spend more, so that commerce is in the first line of the beneficiaries of the reactivation.

This spending was reflected in different subsectors of the economy that began to rebound in October, such as health 7.36%, housing 3.46%, education 4.36%, and various expenses 3.62%, which also reflect the cautious behavior of Colombians after the quarantine.

This way of forecasting affects other sectors, such as restaurants and entertainment, which have not yet opened due to the risk that crowds pose in times of pandemic. For Raddar This trend may change how Colombians perceive their spending:“The composition of household spending was affected during the isolation phases, giving greater weight to food, household and miscellaneous expenses. This trend has been reversed in recent months with openings and reactivation, showing that it is possible that the pocket of households does not have major changes in its composition “Therefore, to the extent that the sectors reactivate and the pandemic is contained, spending returns to its historical constant and incorporates sectors still halted by the crisis.

Further, Raddar argues that the impact of the La Niña phenomenon, which began with heavy rains in the country, will be an element to be considered in the following months, due to the consequences that the cold climate brings in the field of respiratory diseases.

With the arrival of the year-end season, the expectation of a sustained increase is greeted with caution. The consulting firm affirms that it will not reach levels of 2019, one of the years with the best record for the Colombian economy, and that, given the context, it will be sustained by what has been observed since August. Analysis that coincides with those issued by other sectors that, despite the reactivation, are prudent when it comes to projections, such as tourism and hotels, the latter favored in recent weeks by the total opening of the country’s airports.

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