Rich S'poreans buck Asian trend in luxury spending: survey

Rich S'poreans buck Asian trend in luxury spending: survey
By Dylan Loh | Posted: 13 October 2012 2121 hrs

SINGAPORE: Wealthier Singaporeans seem to be buying more luxury goods, compared to the rich in other regional countries.

A survey of over 20,000 of the well-heeled across 11 countries, including Australia, South Korea and India, showed that purchases of designer goods by Singaporeans increased from 11 to 17 per cent over one year.

Those surveyed came from households with a minimum monthly income of S$13,000.

Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Australia are among the countries where the well-to-do are not cutting back on luxury spending, according to a survey by research firm Ipsos.

Despite the global economic situation, wealthy Singaporeans are buying more watches worth over S$1,200.

Purchases of such timepieces are up from 19 per cent in 2011, to 24 per cent in 2012.

Buys of designer goods worth over S$1,200 by Singaporeans in the same period also rose by 6 per cent, said Steve Garton, executive director of Business Insights at Ipsos.

"People have got money, they've been careful with their money. There's no predicting what's going to happen in the future, except that they will continue to have assets, and will continue to want to have a quality of life that they can afford," he said.

Singaporeans seem to have also taken to fancy gadgets in a big way.

The survey said 33 per cent of them own tablet computers, with 29 per cent willing to buy one in the next year.

As for smartphones, 70 per cent of well-heeled Singaporeans own them now, up from 55 per cent in 2011.

- CNA/cc


- wong chee tat :)