Confidence in Asia Pacific buoyant

Confidence in Asia Pacific buoyant

SINGAPORE: Consumer confidence in the Asia Pacific region remains buoyant despite fears that high oil prices and geopolitical uncertainties will slow economic growth, a MasterCard survey showed on Monday.

Of the 13 Asian markets surveyed, consumers in 11 were optimistic about their economic prospects over the next six months, compared with eight at the end of 2003.

Vietnam was the most optimistic with a score of 91.6 out of 100, followed by Malaysia at 84 and China at 78.9.

With a score of 100 the most optimistic and 50 neutral, the average of the 13 countries surveyed was 62.3, down from 64.9 in the previous report but higher than 44.9 a year ago and the historical average of 55.3. -- AFP