Consumer confidence in Finland did not fall any further during November, according to the latest CCI report published by Statistics Finland on Monday.
The CCI, or Consumer Confidence Index, stood at -12.4 in November, compared to -12.6 in October and -11.5 in September.
In November last year, the CCI dropped to -16.9.
The survey found that consumers were concerned about their own current financial situation and their expectations for the future were still "very weak". Respondents' views of the outlook for the Finnish economy also remained gloomy.
"As many as 71 percent of consumers thought that Finland’s economy is now worse than one year earlier, and only three percent saw it as better," the report stated.
Consumers' expectations about Finland's general unemployment situation remained at a "dismal level", Statistics Finland noted, with 61 percent saying unemployment was likely to increase over the coming year.
"In November, employed consumers (wage and salary earners and self-employed persons) also felt that their personal threat of unemployment or temporary lay-off had remained unchanged. The threat was estimated to be slightly greater than the long-term average."
Statistics Finland's CCI is based on a consumer confidence survey, which was answered by 1,240 people in Finland between 1 and 16 November.
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SMEs face tough conditions
Meanwhile, a separate survey conducted by the Federation of Finnish Enterprises (or Suomen yrittäjät) has found that small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) in Finland faced a particularly tough autumn.
Just over half of the companies surveyed rated their own financial situation as being very or fairly good, down from nearly 60 percent in August.
A growing number also said they are concerned about the economic future, with one in four believing that their situation will worsen, up from just 17 percent in August.
Representatives of about 1,300 SMEs in Finland responded to the federation's survey in early November.
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