Affluent S’poreans buck trend in luxury spending in Asia: survey

SINGAPORE: While other Asian countries have seen a recent decline in luxury spending by the wealthy, affluent Singaporeans appear to be bucking the trend.

A survey of over 20,000 of the well—heeled across 11 countries in the region showed that purchases of designer goods by rich Singaporeans increased from 11 to 17 per cent.

The Ipsos PAX Study on latest trends for Asia’s upscale affluent population on lifestyle, spending and media consumption.

Those surveyed come from households with an average monthly income of S$13,000, or the top 20 per cent of the population in terms of wealth.

Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Australia are among the countries where the well—to—do are not cutting back on luxury spending, according to the survey.

Despite the global economic situation, the wealthy in Singapore are buying more luxury watches, with purchases up from 19 to 24 per cent in 2012.

Buys of designer goods worth over S$1,200 by Singaporeans in the same period also rose by six per cent, said Steve Garton, who is the 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," explained Garton.

Wealthy 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.

The survey also found that 70 per cent of rich Singaporeans now have smartphones, compared with 55 per cent in 2011.

— CNA/fa