General Rise in Concern about the Economy Recorded in Asia Pacific

Terrorist Attacks Worry Most of the Americans and Europeans

24 November 2004
Hong Kong

It would seem that regardless of culture and language, and despite differences in the socio-economic and political environments between the countries in which we live, people the world over shared a common concern - a deterioration of their local economy, and what a downturn may bring - according to ACNielsen, the world’s leading market research firm.

In the latest ACNielsen Consumer Confidence Survey conducted in October over the Internet in 28 countries across Asia Pacific, Europe and the US, 66% of respondents cited the economy as their major concern. Health follows with 57% of consumers worldwide citing it as a concern.

The economy and state of one’s health have consistently been top concerns for many Asians for a number of years. With the expansion of our Asia Pacific survey to encompass Europe and the US, it’s interesting to note that these are also universal concerns shared by many Americans and Europeans,” said Mr Bienvenido Niles Jnr, President, ACNielsen, Asia Pacific.

“Job Security” continues to rank among the top three major concerns in Asia Pacific (52%) while “Terrorism” is much more frequently mentioned by, and is probably closer to the heart of, people in the US (64%) and Europe (45%).

“In the short term, concerns over threats of terrorist attacks are unlikely to go away in Europe and the US, given the situation in Iraq and the hostage situations,” commented Mr Niles. “There is also a strong correlation between expressed concern and actual recent exposure to terrorism and war for the Americans and Europeans. This also probably explains why interest in domestic or international travel is lower in the US in particular."

In Asia Pacific, where eight of the 14 countries surveyed showed an increase in concern about the economy, it appears that both Filipinos and Indonesians are the most concerned about the economy (87%). Japan, while in the mid range (68%), registered a significant 20 percentage points increase from the last round of the survey.

Similarly, in 11 out of the 14 Asian markets surveyed, there was a decline in people's concerns over "Job Security". In Hong Kong, "the Economy" (79%) remains the major concern on consumers’ radar screens, followed by “Job Security" (68%) and “Health" (66%).

New to the regional study, Vietnam stood out as the market with the most people concerned about Health (94%) and Job Security (69%). The Vietnamese certainly need more reassurance that their jobs are secure and that they are now more protected from the effects of SARS and the bird flu threat.

The threat of terrorist attacks, crime and war are the least of the concerns both in Hong Kong and across most markets in the region, when compared with the previous round of the survey.

About ACNielsen
ACNielsen, a VNU business, is the world’s leading marketing information company. Offering services in more than 100 countries, the company provides measurement and analysis of marketplace dynamics and consumer attitudes and behaviour. Clients rely on ACNielsen’s market research, proprietary products, analytical tools and professional service to understand competitive performance, to uncover new opportunities and to raise the profitability of their marketing and sales campaigns.