4.53 PM Friday, 29 March 2024
  • City Fajr Shuruq Duhr Asr Magrib Isha
  • Dubai 04:56 06:10 12:26 15:53 18:37 19:52
29 March 2024

Global consumer confidence index: UAE in Top 10

Published

The United Arab Emirates was among the top 10 countries in the world in terms of  consumer confidence, according to The Nielsen Global Consumer Confidence Index for the third quarter this year.

While India topped the index, Saudi Arabia was in second spot.

Overall, consumer confidence remained weak in the third quarter with more than 60 per cent of consumers saying it was not a good time to spend, and one-in-three North Americans saying they have no spare cash, the survey showed.

The economic outlook, followed by job security, became consumers' biggest concern in the third quarter, overtaking worries about rising inflation, according to the quarterly survey by global analytics and information company Nielsen.

The Index dipped just 1 point in the third quarter from the second quarter to 88 points, but it was shored up by a surge in confidence in emerging economies Brazil and Saudi Arabia, which masked weak confidence in major developed economies.

A reading below 100 indicates consumers are pessimistic about the economic outlook for the coming months.

Confidence was highest in India for a seventh straight quarter but India's reading fell 5 points from the second quarter and Saudi Arabia was catching up.     

Consumer morale in the euro zone remained especially weak, notably in France, as the region's debt crisis deepened during the summer.

Confidence in Greece, at the centre of the crisis, actually rose sharply but it was still the fourth-weakest of markets surveyed. Confidence was lowest in Hungary.      

One-in-five Europeans said they have no extra cash to spend, although that was better than one-in-three North Americans.

Confidence in European powerhouse Germany was better than much  of Europe and the United States, but like the US its reading dipped 1 point from the second quarter.     

A recessionary mindset is growing among consumers as more than half say they are currently in a recession - up 4 percentage points from last quarter and 7 points from the start of the year. The result is continued spending restraint for discretionary expenses, which is expected to continue into next year.

The survey, taken between Aug. 30 and Sept. 16 and covering  28,000 consumers in 56 countries.

Confidence in China dipped a point while in Europe the Baltic states of Latvia and Lithuania saw a surge in confidence, though it was still relatively low.    

Nielsen Global Consumer Confidence Index in the third quarter, 2011

(Change from Q2, 2011 survey in brackets):         

Top 10 index readings                 

India 121 (-5)  
Saudi Arabia 120 (+13)
Indonesia 114 (+2)
Philippines 112 (-3)
Brazil 112 (+16)
Thailand 109 (+4)
UAE 105 (-5)
China/Hong Kong 104 (-1,-3)
Norway/Malaysia 101 (+3,-9)
Switzerland 99 (-9)
Bottom 10 index readings
Estonia 72 (+6)
Lithuania 71 (+11)
Latvia 69 (+12)
Ireland 64 (0)
France/Japan/Spain 56 (0)
Italy 52 (-3)
Greece 51 (+10)
Romania/S.Korea/Croatia 49 (0)
Portugal 40 (-2)
Hungary 37 (-6)

Source: The Nielsen Company