April Consumer Confidence Hits New Low Due to Stock Market Falls, Long Term Business...

April Consumer Confidence Hits New Low Due to Stock Market Falls, Long Term
Business Outlook Keeps Rising

SHANGHAI, April 29 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- Xinhua Finance eziData China
Consumer Confidence Index (CCCI) was updated today, with the survey results
showing that, under the pressure of unrelieved rising general prices and a
fast falling stock market, Chinese consumer confidence failed to maintain the
rebounding trend seen in the month before and fell again by 1.4 points in
April to hit a new low of 94.9 since the survey started in April 2007.
However, consumer confidence in the mid-long term business outlook was not
affected and kept rising for the third consecutive month in a row. For more on
Xinhua Finance eziData China Consumer Confidence Index, please refer to:
http://www.xinhuafinance.com/en/charts/indicator/ccci/ccci0804_en.jpg .
The recurrent steep falls in the stock market in April has had great
impact on consumers, causing a 3-point drop in consumer confidence in current
conditions, led by a large decline in sentiment on current personal finances.
Future expectations also fell, yet only by a slight 0.5 point. It is worth
noting that, despite of the negative factors seen in April, consumer
confidence on business conditions five years from now did not fall. Instead,
it rose a full three points to 150.9, which was the third month-on-month rise
in a row, with the extent of rise increasing each time, indicating a growing
optimism in China's long term economy on the part of the consumers.
Under the support of the Xinhua Finance family, Xinhua Finance eziData
China Consumer Confidence Index is produced monthly by eziData, a local
provider of China consumer data, and in association with Dr. Richard Curtin.
Dr. Curtin is Research Professor and Director of the Consumer Sentiment
Surveys at the University of Michigan's Institute of Social Research. The
survey this month was conducted through 1,543 telephone interviews from April
1 to 17, 2008. April 2007 survey results are set as the benchmark value of
100. More on the survey methodology can be found in the accompanying section.
The constant falls in the stock market incurred great losses on the part
of the investors, with consumers reporting an average of minus investment
returns in the past twelve months. However, data also shows that the
percentage of stock holders among all respondents, as well as the percentage
of stocks they hold, kept stable, and their future expectations of the stock
market did not collapse but remained stable as in the last few months. All
this is suggesting that the hardest times for the stock market is about to be
over. (The data collection of April survey was completed by April 17 before
the positive news on lowered stamp tax was released.)
As to real estate, debates on whether the market has reached its right
price range under the government control as well as the promotional campaigns
by some major real estate developers in selling their houses have had certain
impacts on consumers' judgment on their house buying decisions. Quite a number
of consumers believed that they should buy at this point when the house prices
were getting lower. And as the hot season for real estate approaches,
sentiment on house buying in one year's time rose again in April after a rise
in March, while sentiment on house selling kept the falling, pushing the
overall consumer sentiment on real estate investment in April to reach a
record high since the baseline survey in April 2007.
In terms of major cities, consumer sentiment in April rebounded in
Shanghai, yet fell in both Beijing and Guangzhou, showing a contrary trend to
that in March.
Sentiment among Beijing consumers went down 3.5 points to 95.2, with both
current conditions and future expectations falling. The fall was mainly due to
a sharp drop in current personal finances and one-year outlook on personal
finances, especially the former. The other three components, however, remained
basically unchanged.
Sentiment among Shanghai consumers rebounded 2.9 points in April to 94.1,
a level close to that in January, ending the bad luck of being the lowest
reading among the three major cities in the previous four months in a row.
Current conditions fell further, yet future expectations rose by a full 6.1
points, with all three components rising, especially in the mid-long term
business outlook.
Consumer sentiment in Guangzhou plunged a full 8 points in April to reach
as low as 88.3. Both current conditions and future expectations fell sharply,
with all five components of the confidence index falling and one-year business
outlook hitting a new low in the city's survey history.
Consumer Voices:
-- I believe in the betterment of the government policies. It is only
that some of the policies have not been well implemented. When they
are I believe we will have a better life.
-- Our salary increases are behind the CPI increases. We are receiving
less and spending more. Life today is not as good as it was yesterday.
Even the Premier was saying that this would be a hard year.
-- Today's house prices are not affordable to the average people. Yet in
the years to come there won't be as large demand for the real estate,
since there will be more houses and less rapidly growing population.
If the government really does its job to control the real estate
market they should be able to do it easily. Therefore, it's still a
matter of government policies.

To find more about CCCI or subscribe to a full version of the survey,
please contact us via info@eZiData.com
Methodology
Xinhua Finance eziData China Consumer Confidence Index is produced in
association with Dr. Richard Curtin, Research Professor and Director of the
Consumer Sentiment Surveys at the Institute of Social Research, University of
Michigan. The index is based on a monthly survey of around 1,500 Chinese
households via stratified random sampling in 50 representative cities across
East, Middle and West China using the same methodology as is used by the
University of Michigan. All data is collected via computer assisted telephone
interviewing (CATI). Index of April 2007 survey is set as the benchmark (100).
Notes to editors:
About Xinhua Finance Limited
Xinhua Finance Limited ("XFL") is China's premier financial information
and media service provider and is listed on the Mothers Board of the Tokyo
Stock Exchange (symbol: 9399) (OTC ADRs: XHFNY). Bridging China's financial
markets and the world, Xinhua Finance's proprietary content platform,
comprising Indices, Ratings, Financial News, and Investor Relations, serves
financial institutions, corporations and re-distributors worldwide. Through
its subsidiary Xinhua Finance Media Limited (Nasdaq: XFML), XFL leverages its
content across multiple distribution channels in China including television,
radio, newspaper, magazine and outdoor media. Founded in November 1999, XFL is
headquartered in Shanghai, with offices and news bureaus spanning 11 countries
worldwide.
For more information, please visit http://www.xinhuafinance.com .
About eziData
eziData is a local provider of China consumer data, serving both financial
and consumer market participants. It aims to serve global and local business
professionals with decision-making tools that relate to consumption in China
and conform to international standards. eziData's comprehensive portfolio of
high-quality consumer data products, which includes a structured real-time
databank, delivers a broader and more insightful view of the market. For more
information, please visit http://www.eziData.com .
For further information

Xinhua Finance
China:
Ms Joy Tsang
Tel: +86-21-6113-5999 or +86-136-2179-1577
Email: joy.tsang@xinhuafinance.com

Mr. Scott Zhang
Tel: +86-21-6113-5996
Email: scott.zhang@xinhuafinance.com

SOURCE Xinhua Finance

Ms Joy Tsang, +86-21-6113-5999 or +86-136-2179-1577, or
joy.tsang@xinhuafinance.com, or Mr. Scott Zhang, +86-21-6113-5996, or
scott.zhang@xinhuafinance.com