The government’s decision to suspend construction of the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant seems to have had some impact on public sentiment in the short run, with the latest confidence gauge rebounding to its highest level in two-and-a-half years, a National Central University survey showed yesterday.
The consumer confidence index rose 2.77 points to 85.73 this month from last month, the highest level since October 2011, the survey by the university’s Research Center for Taiwan Economic Development showed.
The index measures the outlook for the local stock market’s performance, household finances, durable goods, job opportunities, consumer prices and the economic outlook for the next six months.
The survey — which polled 2,432 people over the age of 20 from April 19 to Wednesday last week — showed an improvement in public sentiment across the board, except for some worries about consumer prices.
The stock market sub-index continued to lead the rise among the six gauges this month, increasing by 8.6 points to 87, the highest level in three years.
“The results showed that recent controversies over the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant will not have a significant impact on the stock market,” center director Dachrahn Wu (吳大任) told a media briefing.
Compared with the shock on the securities market caused by a nuclear power-related issue in 2000, the government’s move to suspend the plant has been more predictable, with more people supporting a halt to construction, Wu said.
However, Day Jaw-yang (戴肇洋), a researcher at the Taiwan Research Institute (台灣綜合研究院), said the issue may still have some negative effects on the nation’s economy in one or two years’ time, considering possible restrictions on electricity use in the future and a potential rise in electricity rates.
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