Positive vibes

Manama : Majority of the residents in Bahrain are optimistic that business conditions in the Kingdom will improve in one year, according to a recent survey.

The Middle East Consumer Confidence Index survey, conducted by Bayt.com in collaboration with YouGov, revealed that about 52pc of the respondents have the positive feeling that the business milieu is going to burgeon in one year.  

The survey quizzed respondents on their opinion about economy, personal finance, their likelihood to purchase and invest, and the job market in general. Data from UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia was collected for the survey.

In Bahrain, 26pc people opined that business conditions will remain the same. Meanwhile, 13pc of them said it will get worse and 9pc people said they are undecided. Overall, 43pc of Middle East and North Africa (MENA) residents expect the business situations to get better within the next year. 

The GCC residents were the most optimistic, 65pc of the UAE residents and 60pc of Qatar residents said they are more optimistic about the future business conditions in their country of residence. Saudi Arabia (50pc) and Oman (50pc) and Kuwait (45pc) also had mostly positive responses. 

Regarding the national economy, 43pc of Bahrain residents said that it will improve in the next six months. About 25pc of them were of opinion that the economy will remain the same, while 20pc of residents said it will get worse and 13pc of them said they are undecided. 

Meanwhile, 30pc of the overall Middle East respondents expect the economy in their country of residence to improve in the next six months. The GCC countries UAE (50pc), Qatar (42pc), Saudi Arabia (40pc) and Oman (37pc) had the most positive responses. The survey also revealed that in MENA region, 43pc are not satisfied with the job security in their current organisation, while 39pc claim to be satisfied.

The survey was collected online from August 3 to 31, 2016, with 2,893 respondents from different countries. Males and females aged 18 years old and above were included in the survey.