RBI Launches September 2025 Consumer Confidence Surveys
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has officially launched the September 2025 round of its Urban Consumer Confidence Survey (UCCS) and Rural Consumer Confidence Survey (RCCS). These surveys are conducted every quarter to gather public opinion from both urban and rural households on critical issues such as the economy, employment, household income, prices, and spending patterns.
By engaging with households directly, the RBI aims to measure the overall confidence of Indian consumers and understand how families perceive the current economic situation compared to one year ago. The feedback collected plays an important role in shaping the central bank’s monetary policy decisions.
📊 Where the Surveys Will Be Conducted
- Urban Survey (UCCS): To be conducted across 19 major cities — Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh, Chennai, Delhi, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Jammu, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Nagpur, Patna, Raipur, Ranchi, and Thiruvananthapuram.
- Rural Survey (RCCS): To cover households across 31 states and union territories, including Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, and others.
This broad coverage ensures that the survey captures diverse perspectives from both metropolitan households and rural families.
🔎 What the Surveys Measure
The Urban Consumer Confidence Survey will focus on households in large cities, asking questions related to:
- The general economic situation in the country
- Employment opportunities and job security
- Price levels and inflation
- Household income trends
- Spending and savings behaviour
The Rural Consumer Confidence Survey will include similar parameters, with emphasis on rural families’ expectations for the year ahead regarding income, employment, prices, and household expenditure.
Respondents are asked whether they feel conditions have improved, worsened, or remained the same compared to a year ago.
🏦 Why Consumer Confidence Surveys Matter
Consumer confidence is a critical measure of how optimistic or pessimistic households are about the economy. High confidence typically translates into greater spending and investment, while low confidence signals caution and reduced demand.
For the RBI, these surveys are an essential tool because:
- They help gauge public sentiment about inflation and growth.
- They provide inputs for monetary policy decisions such as interest rate changes.
- They highlight the difference in perceptions between urban and rural India, ensuring more balanced economic strategies.
💻 How to Participate
Households selected by the RBI’s survey partner — a Mumbai-based field agency — will be contacted directly to provide their responses. However, those not contacted can still voluntarily participate online by filling out the survey schedule available on the RBI’s official website.
The RBI has urged participants to extend their full cooperation, stressing that these surveys are vital in shaping economic policies that affect all citizens.
📝 Conclusion
With inflation, jobs, and income remaining major concerns for households, the RBI’s Consumer Confidence Surveys act as a mirror of public sentiment across India. By capturing both urban and rural perspectives, these surveys help policymakers design effective strategies to address the real issues faced by families.
As the September 2025 round begins, the results will provide key insights into how Indians feel about the economy — today and in the year ahead.
