UAE consumers feeling the pinch

Name recall: brand products will win the hearts of Gulf and North African consumers looking for value for money.

DUBAI // Nearly three quarters of residents in the UAE say their salaries have not kept pace with the soaring cost of living. A survey by online job site Bayt.com, in conjunction with research specialists YouGovSiraj, found that consumer confidence had taken a hit as consumers tackled inflation and the cost of living. The UAE showed the steepest drop in consumer confidence regionally, falling more than eight points on the consumer confidence index since the last survey was conducted.

Decreased confidence levels were also detected in Bahrain, by 4.9 index points, Saudi Arabia by 2.1, and Qatar by just 0.3. In North Africa, consumer confidence dropped by 7.6 points in Morocco, 2.7 points in Algeria and 1.9 index points in Egypt. Only Kuwait fared well regionally, increasing by three points. "People are really starting to feel the pinch now," said Vivek Wagle, the research director at YouGovSiraj. "They have come to the point that even if their salary increases by 10 per cent, they feel it will not keep up with 50 per cent increases in costs."

The survey is a gauge of whether consumers feel their financial position has improved, or become worse, than it was a year ago. The data for the survey was collected online between the period of June 19 and July 7 this year, with 13,792 respondents from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria and Pakistan. Men and woman aged between 20 and 62 were included.

Optimism over future economic stability remained relatively low from respondents in all countries surveyed, with 35 per cent of all those believing economic conditions would deteriorate. More than 40 per cent of those polled in the region agreed it was a bad time to make any major purchases or investments, two per cent higher than the last survey. Of the countries in the study, Morocco, followed by the UAE, recorded the greatest drop in confidence, falling by 11.6 and 5.8 points each.

Although the Gulf region has avoided the economic woes plaguing the US and much of Europe, researchers say consumers are not immune to the effects of inflation. While lagging consumer confidence was not likely to lead to a slowdown in the marketplace anytime soon, officials say it will inevitably affect the choices consumers make. "While intentions to buy have not dropped significantly, what we are likely to see are people making choices based on value: the winners will be brands that have developed strong bonds with their customers and those that offer better value for money," said Nassim Ghrayeb, chief executive of YouGovSiraj.

People remain optimistic about job prospects. Around 36 per cent of the region's respondents believe there will be more jobs available in a year's time. Qatar and the UAE were the most positive in this regard at 57 per cent and 49 per cent, compared to just 21 per cent of those in Egypt who felt less optimistic about future employment opportunities. @Email:[e-mail]