November 20, 2008
Bangkok - Although the consumer confidence index picked up a little, most Thais still expressed concerns over economic recession which they thought would not improve in a year.
Four in ten Thais said the economic condition would not be better in the next twelve months, according to Nielsen (Thailand).
72 percent believed the employment opportunity would be worse while 68 percent thought it was not the right time to spend on stuff they wanted.
58 percent planned to save for the future.
40 percent of Thai consumers expressed concerns over economic problem while 27 percent worried about political uncertainty.
Concerns over fuel oil, debt and job security accounted for 20, 18 and 16 percent respectively.
Lots of Thai people were keen to invest in the retirement funds apart from saving their money for the future.
Changing consumer behaviors were seen in the survey. Consumers tried to spend less on power bills (60%), entertainments (57%), and new clothes (56%).
They also wanted to cut car (49%) and phone use (44%).
