Feeling the pinch

tauringhuang.

Aug 22nd 2008
From Economist.com

Who claims to be the most cash-strapped?


THE rising prices of food and fuel have hurt wallets all over the place. But consumers react in different ways, and how they spend any spare cash differs too. A survey of 51 countries by Nielsen, a marketing-information firm, found that people in the Asia-Pacific region are more inclined to save than others, with 57% putting spare cash in the bank. Russians, perhaps catching up on years of no shopping, are more likely to spend their money on clothes. But the choice to spend or save is a luxury for many: nearly a quarter of American respondents say that they have no disposable income and consumer confidence is low. Europeans feature prominently among those who are feeling most cash-strapped.