Consumer confidence up despite recent turmoil

Says a MasterCard survey in Bangladesh

Consumers in Bangladesh have a largely optimistic economic outlook despite some unwanted incidents in the past couple of months and continued uncertainty in the global economy, MasterCard, the US-headquartered multinational financial services corporation, said in a report released at a city hotel yesterday.
In Bangladesh, consumer confidence jumped 4.3 points in the first half of 2016 to 71.6 from 67.3 in the last half of the previous year, according to the MasterCard Worldwide Index of Consumer Confidence.
The findings of the study by the global giant indicated that despite some of the recent turmoil, including that connected with the Gulshan terrorist attack on July 1, Bangladeshis are optimistic and confident about the country’s economic health, said Syed Mohammad Kamal, MasterCard’s country manager in Bangladesh. 
Kamal said that the survey does not directly indicate any sort of economic development. Rather, he explained, it indicates the domestic confidence level of the consumers in the overall economy. 
The New-York-based technology company specialising in global payments, first included Bangladesh in its survey in the second half of 2012, when the country's index points were 61.7. The survey first begun in 1993 and has been conducted twice-yearly ever since.
The survey for the latest index was conducted between June and July 2016 on 8,746 respondents aged 18–64.
The respondents were asked to give a six-month outlook on five economic factors: the economy, the stock market, employment prospects, regular income prospects and their quality of life.
The index is calculated with zero as the most pessimistic, 100 the most optimistic and 50 as neutral.
The survey showed that the Asia Pacific largely remains optimistic in its economic outlook, with the exception of Australia. India solidified its position with extremely optimistic territory, posting a 7.5 per cent gain and logging 97.6 per cent points.
Taiwan, which experienced extreme deterioration in consumer confidence in the previous survey, recorded the largest improvement in the current survey. It grew by a large percentage, up 16.3 (from 29 points in H2 2015 to 45.3 points in H1 2016).
Compared to six months ago, seven of the 17 markets saw deterioration in confidence levels. The biggest decline in optimism levels was observed in Indonesia, followed by Hong Kong and Singapore. According to the survey, lower prospects for employment were the key driver for decline.
Indonesia recorded the largest decrease in confidence levels among all the 17 markets surveyed. While all five components saw declines, employment (-26.9 per cent) and the economy (-22.5 per cent) registered particularly large drops.
“Overall, consumer confidence in the Asia Pacific has shown marginal change, with some economies facing headwinds, but the region’s emerging markets, including China, India, Vietnam, Myanmar and the Philippines, remain resilient, with consumers expressing optimism about economic prospects over the next six months,” said Eric Schneider, senior vice-president (Asia Pacific) of Mastercard Advisors.

 

Consumer confidence up despite recent turmoil

Says a MasterCard survey in Bangladesh

Consumers in Bangladesh have a largely optimistic economic outlook despite some unwanted incidents in the past couple of months and continued uncertainty in the global economy, MasterCard, the US-headquartered multinational financial services corporation, said in a report released at a city hotel yesterday. In Bangladesh, consumer confidence jumped 4.3 points in the first half of 2016 to 71.6 from 67.3 in the last half of the previous year, according to the MasterCard Worldwide Index of Consumer Confidence. The findings of the study by the global giant indicated that despite some of the recent turmoil, including that connected with the Gulshan terrorist attack on July 1, Bangladeshis are optimistic and confident about the countrys economic health, said Syed Mohammad Kamal, MasterCards country manager in Bangladesh. Kamal said that the survey does not directly indicate any sort of economic development. Rather, he explained, it indicates the domestic confidence level of the consumers in the overall economy. The New-York-based technology company specialising in global payments, first included Bangladesh in its survey in the second half of 2012, when the countrys index points were 61.7. The survey first begun in 1993 and has been conducted twice-yearly ever since. The survey for the latest index was conducted between June and July 2016 on 8,746 respondents aged 1864. The respondents were asked to give a six-month outlook on five economic factors: the economy, the stock market, employment prospects, regular income prospects and their quality of life. The index is calculated with zero as the most pessimistic, 100 the most optimistic and 50 as neutral. The survey showed that the Asia Pacific largely remains optimistic in its economic outlook, with the exception of Australia. India solidified its position with extremely optimistic territory, posting a 7.5 per cent gain and logging 97.6 per cent points. Taiwan, which experienced extreme deterioration in consumer confidence in the previous survey, recorded the largest improvement in the current survey. It grew by a large percentage, up 16.3 (from 29 points in H2 2015 to 45.3 points in H1 2016). Compared to six months ago, seven of the 17 markets saw deterioration in confidence levels. The biggest decline in optimism levels was observed in Indonesia, followed by Hong Kong and Singapore. According to the survey, lower prospects for employment were the key driver for decline. Indonesia recorded the largest decrease in confidence levels among all the 17 markets surveyed. While all five components saw declines, employment (-26.9 per cent) and the economy (-22.5 per cent) registered particularly large drops. Overall, consumer confidence in the Asia Pacific has shown marginal change, with some economies facing headwinds, but the regions emerging markets, including China, India, Vietnam, Myanmar and the Philippines, remain resilient, with consumers expressing optimism about economic prospects over the next six months, said Eric Schneider, senior vice-president (Asia Pacific) of Mastercard Advisors.