Job security tops list of Singaporeans’ concerns in Q2: Nielsen

Consumer confidence slips as food prices rise.

Despite curbs on foreign manpower and the country’s rosy hiring prospects, most Singaporeans still remained concerned about the security of their jobs in Q2.

According to the Nielsen Global Survey of Consumer Confidence and Spending Intentions, job security topped the list of Singaporeans’ major concerns in Q2, followed by the economy, work and life balance, increasing food prices, and health.

Four of the six Southeast Asia markets covered in the survey showed confidence levels declining between Q1 and Q2 2014. Consumer confidence in Singapore dropped to 98 points in 2Q14, compared to 99 points in Q1. However, this is still two points above the global average of 97 points.

The Nielsen survey revealed that the slight pull back in consumer confidence is driven by a 3-point increase from the previous quarter in the number of consumers who feel that future job prospects would not be positive (41%).

Here’s more from Nielsen:

The Nielsen Global Survey of Consumer Confidence and Spending Intentions, established in 2005, measures consumer confidence, major concerns, and spending intentions amongst more than 30,000 respondents with Internet access in 60 countries.

Consumer confidence levels above and below a baseline of 100 indicatedegrees of optimism and pessimism.

The Nielsen survey revealed that while Southeast Asian consumers remain among the world’s most optimistic, they have been less bullish in recent months in the face of escalating political instability around the region and rising food prices.

Four of the six Southeast Asia markets covered in the survey showed confidence levels declining between Q1 and Q2 2014, with Thailand posting the region’s largest decline, down three points quarter‐on‐quarter to 105.

Indonesia’s confidence index score was the second‐highest globally despite dropping one point to 123 points in Q2 2014, while Vietnam and Singapore also dropped one point quarter‐on‐quarter, both posting a score of 98 points.

Conversely, the Philippines and Malaysia both saw increases in confidence between Q1 and Q2. The Philippines jumped four points to 120 (the third‐highest score globally) and Malaysia was up one point to 93.

Globally, consumer confidence rose slightly to 97 points in Q2 2014, up one point compared to Q1 2014. The economy, job security, political stability and food prices feature prominently in Southeast Asian consumers’ list of key concerns in Q2 2014.