Consumer confidence in Singapore climbs to three-year high: Nielsen survey

SINGAPOREANS are more bullish about their job prospects and personal finances, with consumer confidence levels at their highest in three years, a report said.

According to the latest Consumer Confidence Index by Nielsen, consumer confidence levels in Singapore surpassed 100 points to hit 103 points in Q3 this year. Singapore's Consumer Confidence has remained under 100 points since Q3 2011.

The rise in consumer confidence is fuelled largely by a eight percentage point increase from the previous quarter in the number of consumers who feel that future job prospects would be positive. In addition, there was a four percentage point rise in consumers' outlook on their personal finances. Fifty-nine per cent of Singaporeans see their personal finances in the coming year as good or excellent.

Consumers in Singapore are also focused on saving for the future with two thirds putting spare cash into savings after living expenses are covered.

At the same time, there was an upswing in the number of Singaporeans planning to go on holiday - up eight percentage points to 51 per cent - buy new clothes (up three percentage points to 31 per cent) or pay off debts (up eight percentage points to 30 per cent).

"The consistent, steady climb of consumer confidence in the region highlights strong underlying factors that are buoying consumer outlook on the future," said Vishal Bali, Nielsen's managing director (consumer insights) for Southeast Asia, North Asia and Pacific. "The recently emerged clarity on the political front in some markets and a variety of underlying economic factors have helped drive the surge in consumer confidence."

Across South-east Asia, consumer confidence picked up further in Q3, with markets such as Indonesia and the Philippines ranking in the top five most optimistic countries worldwide.