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By Darwin G. Amojelar, Reporter
The affluent Filipino consumers’ reluctance to
spend more in the coming months as a result of higher food and fuel
prices could bring the economy into recession, the Nielsen Company
warned Wednesday.
In its Consumer Confidence Concerns &
Spending Survey, Nielsen Managing Director Benedicto Cid Jr. said
there are indications of less interest in spending for home
improvements, buying cars and other expensive things, possibly
driven by lower confidence in the economy.
The Filipino consumer’s confidence fell
sharply by 9 percentage points to 99 percent in the first half of
2008, compared to levels recorded in the previous semester and first
half of last year.
“After continuously improving since 2006, the
Philippines’ confidence dropped significantly in the first half of
2008, like the rest of the world,” Cid said.
But, he added, things are starting to look tight
for people and they are becoming more cautious to spend because of
the rising prices. “If things are looking tight to you, then you
may not spend for big things,” Cid said.
“If this [cautiousness] persists and if people
become more cautious on spending, it could affect things because
these are middle- and upper- class Filipinos. They have spending
power,” he explained.
The Nielsen official warned that if affluent
Filipinos defer spending on more expensive items, the economy would
slow down a bit, which may bring it into recession.
Cid said 61 percent of the respondents said the
country is already in recession, despite moderate economic growth.
In the first three months, the economy grew 5.2 percent.
Nielsen made an online poll survey of about 523
Filipinos from April 21 to May 6, 2008, with an error margin of
about plus or minus 4.4 percent. The respondents belonged to upper-
and middle-class elements aged 18 and older.
Major concerns
The survey revealed that in an economic
downturn, Filipinos are most concerned about unemployment, inflation
and political instability.
“Worth noting is that the level [of those]
that are concerned about inflation has jumped by 15 points versus
the last survey to 58 percent, which probably reflects rising prices
of rice, fuel and other products,” Cid said.
In the next 12 months, he added, Filipinos, like
most in the Asia-Pacific, will be much less optimistic about job
prospects and personal finances.
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