As the end of 2011 draws near, Canadians are doubtful about job prospects, their personal finances and whether it’s wise to spend money right now, according to a new Nielsen survey.

The recession was a wake up call to a new conscientious consumer, where spare cash is low and prices are high. Three key trends are defining the new Canadian consumer marketplace.

Canadians are much more confident about their finances and the economy than Americans, but that doesn’t mean they are spending with abandon. More than half of Canadians believe that the country is still in a recession and they continue to carefully watch how they spend. Retailers and consumer-packaged goods manufacturers who know how to connect with consumers will emerge ahead of the rest.

The fragile worldwide economic recovery is evident by the drop of three Consumer Confidence Index points in quarter three to 90. Canada is fairing better with a level of 101, which held fairly steady from Q2.

Private label products can be found in the pantry of nearly every Canadian home, but who buys private label products occasionally and who buys them on a regular basis? New analysis from The Nielsen Company identifies the heaviest private label buyer and finds that the face of today’s private label consumer is changing.

While global consumer confidence continues the slow but steady climb upward from the lows experienced in the first quarter of 2009, consumer spending is following a similar trajectory.

Over the past six months, Canadian consumers have stopped talking about recession and changed the conversation to recovery.

Canada continues to show a steady increase in consumer confidence, with its index rising to 94, up four points since July and 10 points since April.

Consumers around the world have cut back on a range of discretionary purchases to conserve cash.  One area where some Canadians have reduced spending is non-prescription medications, with a quarter of those surveyed changing their buying habits in this category, according to a recent report from The Nielsen Company.  Steps Canadians are taking include using over-the-counter (OTC) meds less frequently (26%), using less than the recommended dosage (13%), buying smaller quantities (10%) or cutting them out altogether (4%). 
As a whole, Canadians are more likely to wait out minor illnesses and …

The notion that the global economy may be on the verge of recovery has not yet translated into improved consumer spending or confidence, although consumers in the emerging countries – Brazil, India and China – seem to be more optimistic than others and are loosening their purse strings ever so slightly, according to the new edition of the Nielsen Economic Current.  Of the 12 countries Nielsen now tracks, all but Taiwan (which declined) showed no significant change in measures of spending.  Canadian, Western European and American spending was, at best, …