A RECENT survey conducted by Ipsos Malaysia indicated a rising sense of pessimism among Malaysians regarding the trajectory of their country, with nearly half of the respondents believing that Malaysia is heading in the wrong direction.
The survey, conducted from January to March of this year, involved 500 respondents aged between 18 and 74.
According to the findings, 47% of the participants expressed the view that Malaysia is moving in the wrong direction. This figure marks a significant increase from the 26% recorded in January of the previous year.
Among the primary concerns highlighted by respondents, political corruption emerged as the top issue, with 50% of participants citing it as their main worry. This represents a 3% increase compared to previous data.
“Other concerns include inflations (38%), unemployment (32%), poverty and social inequality (31%) and taxes (23%),” it said in a statement.
Interestingly, the survey revealed that Malaysians are less worried about crime and violence compared to global population trends.
Moreover, the survey also shed light on declining consumer confidence among Malaysians. The Consumer Confidence Index derived from the same study, indicated fluctuating sentiment among consumers with a notable decrease from 54% to 49% over the past year.
“Malaysia’s quarterly consumer confidence has decreased from 54% to 49% throughout the past year, with a significant dip in the last quarter of 2023. In contrast, the global average has remained constant, hovering between 48% and 49%.
“Even though consumer confidence stabilised in the first two months of the year (Jan and Feb), it further dived by 4.2% in March.”
Ipsos’ group managing director Arun Menon and public affairs research manager Atticus Poon noted that Malaysians are increasingly concerned about their financial situation and are exhibiting reluctance towards spending.
“As the hopeful months of the New Year have subsided, more Malaysians have become deeply concerned about their financial situation and are extremely apprehensive about spending.”
Main photo credit: VOA
