Brits relatively confident in finances, says Ipsos data

British people are relatively confident in the the state of their personal finances, according to the latest data that has been released by Ipsos.

The marketing firm has unveiled its Financial Security Monitor for 2014, which gauges opinion on personal finance in 24 countries across the globe.

Based on the results, people in the UK rank well when compared to their EU counterparts, with just over a third (34 per cent) stating they are confident in their personal finance and their ability to manage debt effectively – a one per cent increase month-on-month.

The news is particularly promising, given that six of the bottom eight countries included in the survey are from the EU, meaning it would appear the UK is making relatively positive progress.

It is hoped that the manifestation of this consumer confidence will lead to fresh economic growth as we enter a new calendar year, persuading people that they can handle borrowing if it facilitates a new enterprise.

The data indicated that Britons are now as confident in their economy as those in Germany, a revelation that has demonstrated how the two countries appear to be moving in opposite directions.

At the other end of the scale, EU nations such as Italy, France and Romania came out from the survey poorly, with less than a fifth of respondents in all three nations claiming they are confident in their personal finance.

Sandwiched between Italy (12 per cent), France (17 per cent) and Romania (18 per cent), were Japan and South Korea, where 14 per cent and 20 per cent respectively said they felt confident.

Meanwhile, top of the pile were Brazil and India – the only two nations in the survey where a majority of respondents felt fully confident.

By James Francis