Consumers in 10 of the world’s top economies continued to be wary of spending their money in May, according to the latest edition of the Nielsen Economic Current, which provides a snapshot of global consumer and retail trends across 10 countries which represent nearly 65 percent of global GDP.  Tracking key performance indicators, Brazil and the U.K. led the pack with solid improvements in their scores, while the U.S. and Canada showed declines.  The rest of the countries tracked (China, France, Germany, India, Italy and Spain) showed no movement from …

How have gamers responded to the recession? While much of the conversation has focused on fluctuations in new game sales, a new study “The Value Gamer: Play and Purchase Behavior in a Recession” by the Nielsen Company shows there is much more to the story. Over the past several months, the number of hours that gamers claim to be playing is at an all time high, part of a rising trend in gameplay that began in 2007. Additionally, gamers have increased their purchase of used games to record-breaking totals since …

Nick Lake is VP, Group Client Director, The Nielsen Company
Summer’s coming. Beer season. And as grocery retailers develop strategies to help maximize their sales during the 2009 summer selling season, it’s clear there are a number of unanswered questions about the economy that could impact your business: Have job losses begun to stabilize? Which way will the stock market go today? Have we hit rock bottom yet?
If we had a crystal ball, it would be easy to determine the answers to those and other questions about our economy. But it’s …

While emerging markets experience the largest declines in consumer confidence to date, signs of recovery are imminent as the U.S. shows a glimmer of hope posting no significant declines from six months ago.

Global consumer confidence has reached an all-time low, according to the Nielsen Global Consumer Confidence Index [download]. Thrifty habits being formed during the downturn will carry over into the recovery.
In the past six months, the index has plummeted to a record low 77 points from 84 points. The catalyst: Latin America, Russia and other emerging nations are now feeling the full effects of a recession that began in the United States, officially, in December.
Though consumer anxieties about the economy take many forms, the most widespread fear centers on job loss. …

While the economic downturn is affecting everyone, not all consumers respond in the same ways. Finding opportunities are not impossible—but knowing where to look is key to success.

Ken Cassar, Nielsen Online
For our March 11 webinar, “Retail Recession Realities,” I’ll be recommending coping strategies for retailers dealing with the ongoing economic crisis. The news has gone from bad to worse in the past six months, but there are approaches retailers can take to survive the lean times and even come out ahead when (dare I say it?) the economy recovers.
The Web offers opportunities for growth like no other channel. Quick case in point – readership of traditional offline newspapers has declined significantly of late, and with it, the …

Marketers across industries are being charged with cutting back their marketing schedules to fit leaner budgets. However the dilemma for most is deciding what media hits the cutting room floor. Nielsen’s recession analysis demonstrates how a marketer at a movie studio or any industry can offset much of the potential reach/effective reach declines that would be caused by declining marketing budgets due to the recession.

Ken Cassar
I’ve been preparing for our upcoming Webinar on Retail Coping Strategies, where we will provide constructive advice to retailers on how they can best cope with the challenging retail environment that we’re in. This has led me to think about companies that are holding up well through the recession.
There are three companies that I’m particularly interested in: Walmart, Amazon, and Hyundai. Walmart’s US sales grew by 6.7 percent, profits by 11 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008. Amazon just announced that Q4 2008 sales were …

The column below, by Tom Pirovano, Nielsen, was recently published in Nielsen’s “Consumer Insight” online newsletter.
1. Take higher margins in less price-sensitive categories
Ranking categories based on purchase frequency is a fast and inexpensive way of identifying categories that are least sensitive to higher pricing.  Shoppers are less likely to remember pricing on products purchased only once or twice per year. For higher-priced products, however, shoppers are more likely to shop around for the best deal.
2. Lower the thermostat in stores this winter
Your customers will be wearing coats anyway.  This will …