Consumers in most countries globally look set to keep a tight grip on spending in coming months as they worry about job security and rising inflation, a survey by the Nielsen Company showed Sunday. Only 14 out of 52 countries surveyed worldwide showed positive consumer confidence at the end of last year in only. However, Saudi Arabia is one of the few which continuously showed optimism. The Kingdom's Nielsen Global Consumer Confidence Index in the third quarter of 2011 notched up 13 points to 120 from the previous quarter. Global consumer confidence remained weak in the third quarter with more than 60 percent of consumers saying it was not a good time to spend, and one-in-three North Americans saying they have no spare cash, the survey showed. The economic outlook, followed by job security, became consumers' biggest concern in the third quarter, overtaking worries about rising inflation, according to the quarterly survey by global analytics and information company Nielsen. The Nielsen Global Consumer Confidence Index dipped just 1 point in the third quarter from the second quarter to 88 points, but it was shored up by a surge in confidence in emerging economies Brazil and Saudi Arabia, which masked weak confidence in major developed economies. A reading below 100 indicates consumers are pessimistic about the economic outlook for the coming months. One-in-five Europeans said they have no extra cash to spend, although that was better than one-in-three North Americans. Confidence in European powerhouse Germany was better than much of Europe and the United States, but like the USits reading dipped 1 point from the second quarter. "The third quarter was volatile and challenging for global economies and financial markets amid stagnant US unemployment figures and a worsening euro zone debt crisis," said Venkatesh Bala, chief economist at The Cambridge Group, a part of Nielsen. "A recessionary mindset is growing among consumers as more than half say they are currently in a recession - up 4 percentage points from last quarter and 7 points from the start of the year. The result is continued spending restraint for discretionary expenses, which is expected to continue into next year." Rising inflation threatened consumer confidence in previously bullish emerging markets, he said. "Going forward, rising prices in several emerging markets such as China and India have potential to dent consumer confidence and spending, especially if their governments decide to expand policy actions to combat higher inflation," Bala said. China's index reading dipped 4 points to the 100 level whereas Brazil was in the top 10 most confident markets and its score rose 5 points from the third quarter to 108. The survey was taken in mid-November, covering 26,000 consumers in 52 countries. The survey is based on consumers' confidence in the job market, status of their personal finances and readiness to spend.
