Malaysian Consumer Confidence Ends 2015 Flat

KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 2 (Bernama) -- Malaysian consumer confidence ended 2015 on a subdued note with the index up two points from the third quarter to 80 percentage points, according to the latest Nielsen Global Survey of Consumer Confidence and Spending Intentions. In a statement Tuesday, Nielsen, the global performance management company said Malaysia is now ranked the 36th most confident country globally in the fourth quarter (Q4) 2015, up seven spots from the previous quarter, in its latest online survey. It said average global consumer confidence has remained at what was the all time low recorded in Q3 with just a small gain in Q4. "This is not a surprise as nothing has really changed in terms of the economic or political environment with oil prices continuing to drop, the ringgit remaining weak and concerns surrounding job security still simmering," said Country Manager, Richard Hall. The survey involved 30,000 respondents with Internet access in 60 countries. It said although the economy remained the Malaysian consumer's key concern with half of the respondents being worried about the nation's financial status (50 per cent versus 61 per cent in previous quarter), a quarter of the them said job security is now the second most worrying (25 per cent, an increase from 18 per cent in last quarter). It also said Malaysian consumers continued to be prudent about their spending habits with eight out of 10 having changed it in the last 12 months to save on household expenses (84 per cent). "There are still lingering effects from the introduction of the GST in consumers' minds. They believe the impact of the consumption tax is far greater on their spending power than the inflation data suggests. "This effect will lessen this year and be fully out of the system by June," said Hall. --BERNAMA