As a parent, I’ve always been conscious about my savings. I make sure I set aside college funds for my children while leaving enough money for the household and small luxuries. Now that my kids are out of college, I’m faced with another milestone in my life: my eventual retirement. Although I can easily sit back, relax, and concentrate more on my advocacy, it’s not a good idea to be complacent when it comes to my cash flow, especially in today’s economic crisis which affects us globally and locally. While I’m still young and healthy, I find ways to earn extra income and save for my retirement.
I’ve always been curious how the global economic crisis influences consumer confidence in different continents across the world. What are their greatest concerns? How are consumers coping? Are Filipinos as pessimistic about the economy as other nationals? How are we faring as compared to our neighbors? With an economy heavily dependent on OFW remittances, how affected are we with the massive retrenchments in the US and other countries?
The latest Nielsen Global Consumer Confidence, which was conducted 19 March – 2 April 2009, covered the consumer sentiment and confidence from over 26,000 consumers interviewed over the internet in 50 markets around the world (Download PDF file of the Summary) The survey, which began in 2005 is released bi-annually, provides interesting insights on expenditure, saving patterns, and consumer concerns. Victoria R. Santos, Managing Director of The Nielsen Company (Philippines), Inc. presented the study in a press briefing today.
Let’s take a look at the Consumer confidence Index by market before tackling the Filipino Consumer confidence. As you can see from the chart below, Global Confidence has declined but Filipino Consumer Sentiment is less impacted.
Global Confidence dropped by 7 points from 84 to 77, the most significant decline in 3 years. Confidence in 48 of 50 countries fell versus the last study except for Taiwan. Indonesia topped Nielsen’s Global Consumer Confidence Index at 104 points, followed by Denmark, (102 points) and India (99 points). In contrast, Korea, Portugal and Latvia are the most pessimistic countries. Philippine Consumer Confidence dropped by 6 points but ranks high among the countries at 6th place, possibly aided by stable OFW remittances and a strong BPO sector.
The Filipino Consumer Confidence took into account three components on their perception and sentiments towards job prospects, personal finance and willingness to spend:
1. Filipinos are quite optimistic about job prospects, placing third out of 14 in the Asia Pacific.
2. Filipinos are among the more optimistic on Personal Finances, ranking second out of 14 countries in the Asia Pacific.
3. While Filipino consumers remain upbeat on consumer confidence, they tend to be prudent on spending. Filipinos are “moderate” on whether it’s a good time to spend.
Filipinos’ Spare Cash is consistently intended for Savings, Clothing, New Technology, and settling Debts/loans.
Holidays/vacation, Home Improvement, Investment in stocks/mutual funds, out of home entertainment, and retirement funds are the least of their priorities in consumer spending. The appetite for investment risk is low and shows that Filipinos are prudent and cautious because of economic uncertainties.
While global consumer confidence plummeted to a new low, fears of unemployment and job uncertainty reached new heights. Job security was cited at the leading concern among internet consumers in 31/50 countries surveyed. James Russo Vice President, Global Consumer Insights of The Nielsen Company adds that “For the first time in this survey, job security has become a top concern in life.”
“Six months ago, global consumers cited the economy and work/life balance as their two top concerns in life but consumer priorities have rapidly changed along with the economic deterioration”, said Russo. “With record global redundancies affecting every industry, the economy and job security eclipsed all other concerns in life today.” The same findings also show in the Asia Pacific.
Among global online consumers who believe they’re currently in recession, 52 percent said they were bracing themselves for a global recession to last 12 months or longer. One in two consumers isn’t expecting any miracles for a quick rebound – steady but stable is probably the best approach they are hoping for. Eight out of 10 Filipinos believe we actually are in recession, the 8th highest level of 14 Asia Pacific countries.
Among the current recessionistas, nearly one in five (23%) online consumers believes their country will be out of recession within the next 12 months, spearheaded by Vietnamese (60%) and Indians (56%).Not many Filipinos perceive that they will be out of recession in the next 12 months and it is probably one reason that they are quite prudent with their savings.
This latest Nielsen Global Consumer Confidence,Concerns & Spending Survey for the First Half of 2009 reveals that the crisis is now global and a local concern. Over the next six months, the leading concerns are the Economy and Job Concern with work-life balance as a secondary concern. It is a good sign that Filipinos show consumer confidence. The cautious optimism as shown by their preference to save their spare cash and veer away from investment in stocks and mutual funds might not be enough to stimulate our country’s economic growth. Across the years, Filipinos have shown their resiliency and tendency to save no matter the economic situation. It is good to maintain a balance of saving and spending but our economy will thrive if the consumer is also willing to spend. Perhaps, it is time for consumers to be micro-entrepreneurs and start a business in the Fashion industry or venture on a larger scale towards new technology as there seems to be a market for these. All of us contribute to the growth of our economy.
My plan for the next 12 months is simple: diversify my income stream, save and enjoy part of that income by buying Filipino-owned products. I achieve a work-life balance, and help sustain economic growth through prudent consumer spending. What will you do in the next 12 months?
Popularity: 5% [?]
Next twelve months will be business as usual for many expats and OFWs, including myself, and that is to remit.. remit.. remit..
This study is interesting indeed, it is reassuring in many aspects, because those who are in behavioral economics, realize the importance of perception especially when it comes to consumers, since much of what the market does, the daily fluctuations are indeed driven by sentiments.
In any case, what’s also interesting is that the online aspect of it. This means that it may not be gauging the entire consumer sentiment of The Filipino, but maybe the sentiments of middle to upper class Filipinos. Which is a fair observation, I think, until I can see just how it wouldn’t be through their survey process of course.
But, indeed, I do agree, that spending is a great driver for any economy.
Nick says :
Next twelve months will be business as usual for many expats and OFWs, including myself, and that is to remit.. remit.. remit..
Jose Rizal in “Indolence” says :
If by one of those rare accidents, some wild spirit, that is, some active one, excels, instead of his example stimulating, it only causes others to persist in their inaction. ‘There’s one who will work for us: let’s sleep on!’ say his relatives and friends. True it is that the spirit of rivalry is sometimes awakened, only that then it awakens with bad humor in the guise of envy, and instead of being a lever for helping, it is an obstacle that produces discouragement.
Non sequitur.
I wonder why many pinoys can still afford to buy a brand new car, a new condo yearly.I wonder why people still frequent malls.
Maybe I just think they are many ,but they are only about ten percent rich (guesstimate)and the figure whatever it is for the new middle class supported by overseas relatives.
So that guesstimate would be 9 million rich and a few million more who can afford.
That is not a small number.
That thing about many who frequent malls,;di naman nila kelangan maimili mag palamig lang, ayos na.
Now that is just an observation and nothing to do with the nielsen study.
pardon the grammar.
problema talaga trabaho.
I read this blog by my politician online friend that they were debating the increase of the salaries of public school teachers only to find a text message from his constituent, asking assitance for a job, any job would do.
The summary is here we are debating if we should increase salaries of a certain sector and yet we overlook that some may not even have a salary.
One ought be cleared on the phrase – “buying Filipino-owned products”?
Rightly so, OFW remittance is what buoys up the economy – remove the buoy, the economy drowns, sinks.
Thus, always as ever, national economy has to undergo “blood transfusion” or it will soon die if there be no steady supply.
Theoretically enough, RP lives on borrowed “blood” and as long as that blood circulates in body polity, we feel saved. With America for Americans, there will be a change in future configurations.
When this happens, we need what BF calls “workplace economics”. If only for the sake of a 4-year experiment, I am inclined, but not to decided, to favor an industrial designer that is BF, bias aside.
Rightly so, OFW remittance is what buoys up the economy – remove the buoy, the economy drowns, sinks.
If the economy sticks to the same old ways of doing business – YES, I agree the economy drowns.
But if the economy diversifies and structural reforms are implemented thus creating more jobs and NEW INDUSTRIES at home, then the economy can float.
But we are stuck in this no-to-charter-change conondrum which has made the Philippines lag in terms of FDI in the ASEAN region.
Until we positively address the issue of foreign ownership of business and land we will pretty much be sailing in the same rough economic waters – NO MATTER the captain.
“buying Filipino-owned products” meaning clothes or fashion items made in the Philippines
http://jessicarulestheuniverse.com/2009/05/14/a-good-city-has-great-sidewalks/
i’ve been complaining about our sidewalks, now a columbian has noticed,
But 34% unemployment rate and who knows how high in underemployment?
34% unemployment rate? that’s a bit high…
It’s actually at 7.7% unemployment and 18.2% underemployment.. as of the latest numbers in January..
but yes, unemployment and underemployment is still high.. the underemployment numbers is even more so..
Nick,
SWS said it was 34%. the official number from NEDA is 6 to 7 percent.
BrianB,
Underemployment was 18% according to NEDA.
source:
http://www.neda.gov.ph/econreports_dbs/Updates/PDF_WklyEcon/06%20May%202009%20NEDA%20Updates.pdf#zoom=150
That said, one has to look at the definition of unemployment for NEDA, SWS and who ever is computing and how it was used in context with economic data.
7 per cent, do you believe that? If you think racket falls under employment, it’s possible.
http://www.forbes.com/feeds/reuters/2009/05/12/2009-05-12T072611Z_01_MAN228329_RTRIDST_0_PHILIPPINES-ECONOMY-JOBS-POLL.html
This is an issue of how unemployment is defined.
SWS defines it one way. NSCB defines it differently.
Details at http://www.nscb.gov.ph/headlines/StatsSpeak/041105_rav_mcp_unemployment.asp
And http://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/—dgreports/—integration/—stat/documents/meetingdocument/wcms_100704.pdf
I think Bong and Cocoy are correct in their observation with regards to definition.. but even if similar defintions are adhered to, it seems SWS still finds a 25% unemployment rate, which is still astonishingly high.
I wonder if we can’t tackle this in a separate article, citing papers to indicate which numbers we should be focusing on. Again, a clear diagnosis is imperative if we are truly to understand the current job situation in our nation..
its not just the definitions, but also different sample sizes. lots of differences…
I agree GabbyD, it’s interesting indeed, the disparity between the two findings.. too much disparity so much so, that it should have been tackled by SWS, but was not..
It should not be surprising why even Pinoys can buy a brand new car, a condo, frequent malls. All of these three have a common thread in common – cheap deals, no interest, longer years to pay, low down, no down payment. In short, a business scheme that captures the market across the buyer’s spectrum.
It might be erroneous to calculate the rich to be at 10% of 90 million population – it must be much higher than that now.
Those who do not have a salary, chances are, do not have a work. It’s simple really to borrow from benigno.
Thanks for your comments to my comments.
To add to that I agree:
Car Loans and housing loans 10 years to pay terms with low interest on the first few years(for housing loans).(for car siguro 3-7 years ang terms)
Been with the real estate trade for a while.(keep on changing jobs after being retrenched a few years ago.)
For credit cards(since we mentioned malls ,appliances and consumer spending), since many banks want to lend money,to those whom they think who can afford, chances are many will max out. least sa states me credit bureaus pero may sariling data mining ang mga bangko dito sa pinas maybe they ask meralco who pays high electric bills.(for metro manila).
Then I also agree 10 % is a way off the mark estimate.
And lastly, no salary no job, that is a given .
But we have this habit of stating the obvious because “obvious” is relative.
My plan for the next 12 months is simple: diversify my income stream, save and enjoy part of that income by buying Filipino-owned products. I achieve a work-life balance, and help sustain economic growth through prudent consumer spending. What will you do in the next 12 months?
Just about the same:
A. Diversify income stream
* Launch an e-commerce site – online retailing of grocery merchandise with distribution in Georgia and Florida – beta site is thepinoymall.com
* Increase medical billing retainership of small primary care clinics – marketing to be done in the US, data encoding to be done in Davao City
* Launch tele-radiology/telepathology services that integrates downstream rural primary care clinics with topnotch medical diagnostics
* Launch wellness center (and offer franchises) that utilizes ryodoraku Japanese acupuncture and auricalar acupuncture and provide pain management therapy
B. Settle ALL credit card debts :D
C. Increase SAVINGS
D. Be more frugal in SPENDING
* buy from GOODWILL instead of Nordstrom, Bloomingdales, and JC Penney;
* lesser gimiks – chill at home instead of HOOTERS; :lol:
* buy shoes from Wal-mart and Target instead of Florsheim and Kenneth Cole
* get the $16 cheapo sunglass instead of collecting Killer Loops, wayfarers by Baush & Laumb
* Forego the 50 inch LCD screen; be content with the 50 inch rear projection plasma TV
E. Keep on remitting to the Philippines :)
loling at the 50 inch LCD screen..
Owning a 50 inch or more inches LCD screen has been on hold since forever. I am such a cheapskate and that’s how I managed through the years.
A buddy of mine bought a 50″ LCD TV to replace his rear 50″ projection TV.
Nothing wrong with the rear projection TV – it works like new. He just didn’t like the TV to take up so much space in his condo.
So he pops $1200 for the LCD flat screen TV.
After installing the LCD TV, he commented he wanted the rear TV out of his house – short of throwing it out. As far as he was concerned – the rear projection TV was worthless.
I made an offer bought his 50″ rear projection TV for only $40!!! :lol:
Good ideas on prudent living expressed here. And being a cheapskate is not necessarily the same as being frugal or thrifty, or being prudent in general.
And BTW, there is no rear projection plasma TV that I know. RPTV is old technology compared to plasma or LCD. And has been in US homes much longer, thus they are being disposed at giveaway prices, or for free.
This I know, too. A computer store here in Cagayan de Oro sells very large screen branded plasma TVs for 13k pesos. Used, the salesman says, but in great numbers in their warehouse.
Ergo, in the old country good sources for necessary purchases could also come from the surplus or used outlets. Even for vehicles. A nice multicab, ideal for the narrow and crowded streets in most cities, sells for a tiny fraction compared to brand-new branded vehicles.
Or if you want brand-new, take a look at the cheapo Made In China vehicles and judge prudently. Remembering what consumers used to say about Hyundai in the 90’s. Now it has become mainstream. Same with motorbikes, etc.
Same with used computers. Etc.
amadeo:
you are correct – i meant RPTV.
yes, prudent living. Cheapskate is not exactly the word I should have used.
We dont believe in Consumerism. We buy only what we need. The
excess is luxury. Consumerism is advocated by companies to drive
the profit high.
Philippine consumerism: Buy now forget later.
There’s a succinct phrase to describe people who are addicted to consumerism:
Victims of clever marketing.
Take Valentines Day. What is it that makes this day in our minds a day where being extra-romantic is an absolute requirement so much so as it makes spouses, boyfriends and girlfriends feel guilty if they don’t conform with the traditions associated with it?
That guilt and compulsion to do the Valentine thing we feel is clever marketing at work on our minds. It’s not too different from how other holidays are exploited to give us a self-imposed imperative to buy and consume.
Weak minds are specially prone to it.
I like your diet plan. I should be more disciplined, WHen I was much younger, I could burn those calories easily.
… cont
Back to Nielsen
1. Flips are natural born liars …
2. Flips try to ingratiate themelves to the pollsters by giving sunny outlooks
3. Flips sing away their miseries in Karaoke joints that is why they are happy campers while their wives and children daing lang ang kinakain
4. Isang beer, dalawang beer maligaya na ang Flips … to hell with milk for the children
5. We have vvery low threshold of happiness
6. Pagpinnapalakpakan sila sa Karaoke maligaya na!
7. Flips believe God takes away the wories of their world. Giving them confident outlook
8. Flips are happy when their neighbor come back down to earth
9. Flips are happy when their crab pincers bring down a friend, a foe, a government officials by mere gossips
10. Flips are happy when they see people brown down by pekeng-peryodistas
11. aaaaay, naku … ang dami hindi ka ma-enumerate ang lahat dito …
12. Maligaya ako pag ibinabash ang Flips
The polls are rigged not by Nielsen but pimped by Flips. That is whhy it’s difficult to scientifically poll Flips. Like what i’ve been telling ya’ll Flips cannot be studied. To crack Flips mindd is to crack chaos theory
I’d be so offended if you didn’t look like Chuckie.
Brian, pag i-post ko yong mukha ko wala na mga tao dito sa FV ririspito sa akin. :)
The Nielsen survey is skewed to the wealthy. Flips don’t even know who Nielsen is. Where he lives. What’s he’s last name and where his family came from?
Nielsen survey was on-line. The pop-up thingie. Who would read Nielsen anyways. All he has are numbers. Flips are not numbers people.
Let’s go down to the skinny of it all. According to Universeal McCann Report Wave 3, There are 90,000,000 Flips. 35% of them are less than 18-years-old. 3,700,000 are active internet users. PARE, KAYO NA MAG-KALKULAR SA PORSENTO HA? OK lang?
3.3 of 3.7 active internet users read blogs. HUH? Is it true? Why is it FilipinoVoices got on a trickle of regular and active readers and bloggers?
Listen to this, 2.3 million out of 3.3 million has their own blogs! HA!HA!HA!HA1HA!
3 million out of 3.7 are members of … TA … DA … SOCIAL NETWORKS!!~!!!!! They blog and also a member of Social Network! Dang!
3.14M uploaded photos or photo sharing website mostly XXX-rated pics!!! HA!HA!HA!HA!
2.2 million upload xxx-rated videos. DUDE!!!!
3.6 million watch youtube!!!!!!
Here’s the clincher that MAKES MY HEAD ITCH!!!! 2.3 download podcasts!!!!!!! HA!HA!HA!HA! I don’t believe in this. Flips are more music people. When they listen to news they listen to gossips!!!
Our idiot media don’t podcast!!!! If ever they do you can count with your fingers … HA!HA!HA!Ha!
So, Nielsen polls shows sentiment of the Flips? Yes for the rich, wealthy and corrupt! for the 3.7 million active internet users who download xxx-rated photos and videos and use it more on social network than read news …. HA!HA!HA!HA1Ha!
They’d rather publish their own blogs than be a member of other blogs like FV. Because either they were booted out because they didn’t have cookie-cutter minds of the blog owner or were ex-communicated ….
That is why to each his own blog … that is why FV has only a trickle …
And you guys believe that AKO MISMO has that number of hits in two weeks? HOW NAIVE CAN PIPOL GIT!!!!!!
The Nielsen study is made in behalf of companies who want to know the sentiments of consumers. Internet users fit their sample. I also attended Yahoo-Nielsen’s Internet Study Habits
http://aboutmyrecovery.com/2009/03/26/yahoo-nielsen-first-ever-internet-habits-study-for-the-philippines/
THe Consumer Confidence Survey made sure the sample fit their needs. Out of the possible 20 million interent users, half of these are 20 and above years old
http://www.scribd.com/doc/13661672/Yahoo-Nielsen-Internet-Habits-Study-for-the-Philippines
That means around 10 million internet users not the 3.7 million you stated above.
Ooops! I missed one thing. The 3.7 million users was of 2007!!!! NOT 2009. Sorry for the omission. NOT INTENDED TO MISINFORM.
According to McCann there was a jump of 64% from 2006 figures …
Momblogger, I went to that suggested link. Nielsen director in the Philippines is a Filipino. His target population is not representative of the Philippines.
He should have said instead “METRO MANILA” instead of “Philippines” in general.
My son, who is 14-years-old from St. Louis School of Mandaue spend most of the time on the internet than on TV. He loves Mangga, Drifter and Japanense Anime than anything else. His favorite site is Youtube.
So are his classmates. Andd that is in Cebu not METRO MANILA!
Filipinos are simply filipinos forever. Media director of Nielsen should be given the reboot!
Nielsen’s findings are not the whole of Filipinos BUT for METRO MANILA only!!!! Let us not get duped by fellow Flip. I DON’T CARE HIS CREDENTIALS!!!!
WE have plenty of credentialed Flips who sucks!!!! and Corrupts!!!!!
survey is in national urban centers and not just Metro Manila.
I’m not fond of our statisticians but it’s the only available source … http://www.nscb.gov.ph/factsheet/pdf08/FS-200805-PP2-01.asp
The top ten populated cities as of 2007 is not even close to 10% of 2007 population.
actually it is close. if you add it, its slightly more than 10%
Dude, my first posts is a goner. I cannot even repost it because I don’t do drafts. From my head it goes to my fingertips up on the screen and BAM! I hit submit!!!!!
I don’t do draft checking for spellings and syntaxes …. Now it’s lost forever!!!!!!
DANG!!!!!
Maaalala mo din yun?
Tungkol ba ito sa englitches at pekeng peryodistas o flips?
salamat sa abiso mo :nat to be konsyus about ispeling and grammar.
Oo. Maala ko rin yun. Pero pag i-repost ko the sequence is so convuluted that it loses the intention.
My first and original post was about how yabang da American Flips.
Ya knaw dat they have dan dis and dat and nothing to show!
How goot englischtzes they have. But anyways, i’ve pop my pills my anger is not der anymore … some other time …
There cannot be an informed investing decision in the Philippines. 1stly, our investing decisions are based on pekeng-peryodistas ignomous reporting; 2ndly, MSE stocks are issued by the tisoys and tisays who manipulate numbers by trading among themselves; 3rdly, as simple as vacancy/occupancy rates on condos, housing and its turnover, how long it stayed in the market is not even available; 4thly, our SEC is as sick as any Filipino minds which lacks enforcement powers.
We cannot even know the real score of unemployment. We have high score in confidence and yet pipol are lining up in embassies in Manila just to get out before the ship sinks …
We are optimistic in personal finances and job prospects and yet there are jobs to go around … how odd … Filipioinos are natural born liars … they just want to make believe to the whole world ….
It’s too bad it was an on-line survey which the conyos and the kaike-kaike can only afford while we brown-skin, punked nose are still smearing our noses with pekeng-peryodikos stupid biased racially tainted reporting.
The stats goes to show how the wealthies are not in touch with the pipol. Patay tayong lahat! Oooops! Except me! Kasi OFW ang parents ko, e!
You are actually right about the lack of information on investments. I think the reason not so many want to invest their spare cash in stocks or mutual funds is because they are not aware of it. I invest partly in mutual funds and it worked out for me instead of investing it in pre-need plans like the bankrupt college education plans. Some of it goes to downpayment for real estate for long term investment and the rest savings or consumer spending. Whatever floats your boat.
I don’t know if the respondents are liars, Renato. Maybe they just have faith that there are job prospects out there. The survey asked them on their individual perception not of the Filipino people. Now there should have been a question on “How do you perceive the rest of the Filipinos?” but that was not the objective of the survey.
There is also a separate survey conducted by ING Asia on Philippine Investor Confidence:
http://www.millionaireacts.com/1020/philippine-investor-confidence.html
Point of Clarification on the pingback above above… My question “What will you do in the next 12 months?” stemmed from Nielsen’s survey question on perception of “recession in the next 12 months” and how consumers will cope.
My long term plans have nothing to do with this short term plan of 12 months of consumers.
I think the difference of short and long term plans (of retirement) are two different plans. Isn’t that obvious?
Anong Recession. Mina-Mani lang sa umaga yan ng mga pinoy eh.
matagal nang may recession dito sa pinas.