Increased confidence in their job prospects and financial security saw Vietnam’s index (CCI) go up from 122 in the last quarter of 2018 to 129, third highest globally, behind the Philippines at 133 points and India 132 points, Nielsen said in a new report.

The significant increase in consumer confidence indicates consumers are continuing to positively change their lives and that of their families, said Nguyen Huong Quynh, managing director of Nielsen Vietnam.

The strong growth also comes thanks to high confidence in job prospects and personal finances, as well as the level of willingness to spend, the Nielsen survey found.

80 percent of respondents said they see good or excellent job prospects for the next 12 months, an increase of 5 percentage points compared to the last quarter of 2018. 82 percent were also confident about their financial status in the next 12 months, up 6 percentage points from the last quarter of 2018.

Vietnamese consumers continue to be the most avid savers in the region. Respondents said that they would save 75 percent of their spare cash, followed by Hong Kong and the Philippines, both at 68 percent.

Over half of the respondents also said they would spend spare cash on new clothes and holidays.

Respondents choosing to spend on home improvements or decorations also increased sharply, by 8 percent against Q4 2018 to 47 percent in the first quarter as consumers tend to decorate and renovate their house for Tet, the Lunar New Year festival, which was celebrated in February this year.

The survey polled more than 32,000 online consumers in 64 countries.