More than three in four Irish consumers are concerned that the price of everyday items will continue to increase, the highest level recorded in the 24 countries surveyed for the latest Deloitte State of Consumer Tracker.

The 76% of Irish respondents concerned about the cost of day-to-day purchases was down from 78% last month.

"Once again, this month we see that Irish consumers are the most concerned about inflation, with 76% concerned about the prices of everyday purchases," said Daniel Murray, partner and head of Consumer Services at Deloitte Ireland.

"While this is the same percentage as Australia, it marks a consistently high level of concern about inflation in the minds of Irish consumers.

“Those countries that were least concerned were China (37%), Saudi Arabia (52%), Brazil and India (53%)."

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The Irish survey also found that six in 10 consumers have no extra money left at the end of the month.

Half of all Irish respondents feel their financial situation has worsened over the past year, and just a quarter expect their financial situation to improve over the next 12 months.

Furthermore, 80% of Irish consumers expect prices to rise in restaurants, compared to the 72% international average, and 78% expect to see further rises in household utilities (70% average). The number who expect fuel to rise increased 4% to 68%.

“We are also seeing some interesting demand increases which will require continued and careful contingency planning to avoid potential issues," Murray warned.

"40% of Irish respondents said they planned to take an international flight in the next three months. This is an increase of 3% on this time last year. We also expect to see similar level of rail travel to this time last year with 34% of respondents expected to travel by train, rather than by rental car (13%).

"51% of respondents expect to stay in a hotel in the next three months, which is the same level of demand to last year. Interestingly, just 25% would choose to book private accommodation, such as Airbnb.”

In the grocery sector, demand for own-brand (-6%) and low-cost (-3%) meat has declined on a quarterly basis, but demand for premium meat has been static.

“This may suggest that Irish consumers are once again focusing on the food quality when selecting their meats in particular. Having said that, only 23% have bought several ‘nice to have’ items which shows caution remains when it comes to their purchases," Murray said.

The survey was conducted via email in January, and targeted 1,000 responses per country.

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