Singaporeans would rather travel than eat

Travel remains the top spending priority of Singaporeans, with 64 % saying it was the last category of discretionary spending they would cut.

According to the MasterCard Worldwide Index of Consumer Purchasing Resilience, the most resilient category for discretionary spending is private tuition and extracurricular activities for one’s children. The category was the most resilient in half of the markets surveyed, with the highest Index scores for the Asia/Pacific in India (95.7), Vietnam (92.7) and Indonesia (88.9).

Personal Air Travel is the most resilient category in Australia (72.8) and Singapore (64.4). Consumer electronics tops the Index in Japan (68.5), Fitness and Wellness in New Zealand (76.7) while Fashion and Accessories is the most resilient category in Morocco (85.4).

Yunsok Chang, group executive, Global Products and Solutions, Asia/Pacific, Middle East & Africa, MasterCard Worldwide, said “While it is no surprise that dining and entertainment is at the top of consumers priorities again, it is interesting to see continued positive movement in terms of priorities for the three top categories for the third year running – this is in line with regional economic sentiment and growth over the last six months. Combined with the data on discretionary spending, which are at the highest levels since the survey began, the latest findings show strong consumer sentiment for private consumption over the first half of 2011.”