ING Investor Dashboard Sentiment Index for India jumps 75% for Q1 2009
India and China - Asia's twin engines of growth - drive increase in overall Asian investor sentiment
-- Key Highlights of the Quarterly ING Investor Dashboard Survey
· Index for India leaps 75% to 133 for Q1 2009 from 76 for Q4 2008
· Survey indicates Indian investors are confident about the economy, backed by assurances from the business community and the government
· Indian investors are most confident about their job security vis-à-vis those in other markets, with 64% claiming that the current economic situation has no impact on their job security
· Pan-Asia Index moves up 16% to 85 for Q1 2009 from 73 for Q4 2008 due to strong upside in investor sentiment from India and China
ING, the global financial services group, today released data from its quarterly ING Investor Dashboard Survey which shows a significant increase of 75% in investor sentiment in India for Q1 2009. Despite a slowdown in the global economies and volatility in international financial markets, the ING Investor Dashboard Sentiment Index for India reflects the highest level of investor optimism across Asia.
Commenting on the results, Mr. Navin Suri, Acting CEO, ING Investment Management India said, “Compared with its neighbours in Asia, India’s growth of recent years has been driven predominantly by domestic consumption as well as domestic investment. This pattern & growth insulates the economy from set backs felt in both the global & regional economies. On a relative basis, I’m happy to say that ours is indeed an enviable position. The confidence as seen in the survey is an independent ratification of the same.”
India and China Drive Investor Sentiment in Asia
The overall pan-Asia (ex-Japan) ING Investor Dashboard Sentiment Index increases to 85 for Q1 2009 from 73 for Q4 2008, despite the ongoing global financial and economic crisis. This is the first quarter-on-quarter increase in investor sentiment since the Index was introduced in Q3 2007, moving the Index from the “pessimistic” category back into the “neutral” category.
The ING Investor Dashboard is the first quarterly survey in the Asia Pacific region that provides a pan-Asia (ex-Japan) investor sentiment index. The survey is conducted quarterly across 13 markets* in Asia Pacific, and not only provides market insights on investor attitude and outlook but also allows each market to be benchmarked and tracked against the overall investor sentiment across Asia using the pan-Asia index.
The twin engines of growth in Asia, India and China drive investor sentiment in Asia with their strong upswing in Q1 2009 investor sentiment index scores. Despite both index scores being down from their Q1 2008 scores, the upswing in investor sentiment in Q1 2009 indicate local investors in India and China are confident their strong domestic economies will enable them to withstand the global economic downturn.
(The current Q1 2009 GDP forecast by ING for China and India is at 7% and 5%, respectively.)
Markets
Q1 09 Index
Q4 08
Index
Q1 08
Index
China
124
103
136
India
133
76
156
India optimistic about Q2 2009
In India, investors remain positive about the outlook for Q2 2009.
India investors’ view
Q109
Q408
Economic situation improved
47%
6%
Return on investments increased
36%
6%
Economic situation will improve in Q2 09
63%
49%
§ Only 8% of the investors in Q1 2009 believe that their personal financial situation will deteriorate further compared to 36% in Q4 2008
§ Investors in India are most optimistic in the region about their household financial situation - more than half (53%) say their household financial situation will improve in the next quarter.
§ Investors in India (65%) are also the most optimistic among their counterparts in Asia about the impact of government policy on investment in Q2 2009
§ For India, majority of investors (64%) say economic slowdown will have no impact on job security.
Views on US economy, credit crunch
§ Significantly fewer investors in India (45%) say their investment decisions will be affected by the US economy in the next quarter compared to 69% in Q4 2008
§ Only 45% of the investors in India in Q1 2009 say their investment decisions in the next quarter would be affected by the credit crunch compared to 71% in Q4 2008
According to Mr. Suri, “We are definitely starting to see investors bounce back from the Mumbai terrorist attack, which was well handled by the government; as well as the market shocks from the Satyam corporate scandal. We are well on the way back up, and anticipate positive signs of recovery going forward.”
* The survey was conducted across 13 markets in Asia Pacific: Hong Kong, China, India, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. The pan-Asia investor sentiment index includes all Asia markets and excludes Japan, Australia and New Zealand.