Asian consumers most upbeat, India consumer sentiment highest - Nielsen

Consumer confidence is strongest in emerging Asia Pacific and Latin America, while most Europeans remain edgy on the pace of their economic recovery and the euro zone debt crisis, a global survey showed on Thursday.

Consumer sentiment was highest in India, followed by Indonesia and Norway, according to the survey conducted by the New York-based Nielsen Company in March.

Globally, the Nielsen Global Consumer Confidence Index averaged a reading of 92 points in the first quarter, six points higher than in the third quarter of 2009 and the highest level since the third quarter of 2007.

All regions saw improvement in consumer confidence, but the gap in the pace of economic recovery widened between the booming Asia Pacific and Latin American countries compared to the

sluggish recovery in the United States and western Europe.

"Asia Pacific consumers who were among the first to cut back drastically on discretionary spending 18 months ago are now confident enough to spend their way out of recession," said Venkatesh Bala, chief economist of Nielsen's Cambridge Group.

In China, consumer confidence rebounded to 108 points from 101 six months ago, matching a record reached in the first quarter of 2005.

"Key economic indicators in China all point to a continued strong recovery in 2010," said Chris Morley, a managing director of Nielsen.