Asia Pacific

Thailand consumer lending remains robust in 2023, with double-digit growth rates in gross lending as the category continues to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. The rise in private consumption and the revival in tourism has led to an upturn in…

In 2023, the total credit amount in Taiwan surged over the previous year. This figure has doubled since pre-pandemic levels at the end of 2019. Taiwan's financial landscape boasts a multitude of institutions holding significant liquid funds.…

Gross consumer lending’s growth is continuing to outperform outstanding balance, driven by card lending, as local consumers spend more with the reopening of society and cross-border travel. However, outstanding balance on card lending (encompassing…

Consumer lending in Singapore is exhibiting positive growth in 2023, displaying a robust recovery from the pandemic's impact since 2022. Notably, card lending has emerged as a significant driver of growth in overall consumer lending, coinciding with…

Towards the end of the review period, many local consumers took out personal loans to cope with higher financial burdens. Malaysian banks have offered personal loans with more flexible repayment plans and more appealing terms when required. The…

Consumer lending in Japan is growing in 2023 in line with demand for greater convenience and easy access to lending services, mainly due to more services being accessed online. New emerging players, such as LINE Pocket Money by LINE Credit…

The consumer lending category has experienced another strong performance in Indonesia in 2023. Gross lending has shown further positive growth during the year, along similar lines to 2022. Improving economic conditions as a result of people's…

Consumer lending is growing at a healthy pace in India, driven by evolving lifestyle preferences where consumers strive for a higher standard of living and access to modern amenities. The country’s growing economy, rising disposable incomes, and…

Consumer lending in Hong Kong is experiencing a spike in growth as the economy recovers from the impact of the pandemic, with 14% growth in gross lending primarily driven by card lending. The reopening of borders in the fourth quarter of 2022 has…

Demand for consumer lending is set to see a moderate rebound in 2023, as the pandemic has eased, and consumer spending has returned, especially on services and in other discretionary categories. However, growth in consumer lending in China is…

Current value sales of consumer health in Vietnam continue to record strong growth in line with the rising trend of health and wellness in the country. Post-pandemic, the majority of Vietnamese consumers are taking greater care of their health, and…

Consumer health in 2023 is exhibiting solid current value growth as the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic diminishes. With the resurgence of seasonal ailments, categories such as cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies and analgesics are…

Positive sales growth was registered across most categories of consumer health in the Philippines in 2023 as the strong focus on health and wellbeing that has spread among the population since the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic continued to spur…

The market for consumer health products in Thailand continued to enjoy healthy growth in current value terms in 2023. This was driven, to a large extent, by the revival of normal pre-pandemic patterns of behaviour, including the return of consumers…

Consumer health in Taiwan has performed positively on the whole in 2023, with growth in total current value sales remaining robust and most categories either expanding in volume terms or contracting at a slower pace than in 2022. The easing of the…

During the pandemic Sri Lanka received international support to purchase the necessary medication to help them fight COVID-19. However, due to the current economic crisis the Government of Sri Lanka has had to impose import restrictions due to…

The self-medication trend is growing in South Korea, supporting further sales growth for analgesics, and cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies, especially since the prevalence of the “tripledemic” in the country, consisting of COVID-19,…

With the threat of the pandemic leaving people’s minds in 2023, growth in consumer health in Singapore is set to stabilise, due to the gradual normalisation of consumers’ lives. With the majority of the population vaccinated, and COVID-19 likened to…

Pakistan’s economy continues to struggle and the government secured a further USD3 billion bailout with the IMF in July 2023, avoiding an impending default. Inflation continues to be very high and is being driven by several factors, including…

Consumers are increasingly adopting a preventative approach to maintaining good health, which continues to drive interest in vitamins and dietary supplements in 2023. Established brands continue to dominate sales as brand loyalty is relatively high…

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, Malaysian consumers have been increasingly focused on preventative health measures, and this trend continued into 2023. Alongside the adoption of healthier diets and exercise behaviours, consumers sought out vitamins…

In 2023, health sensitivities among consumers in Laos, due to local diet and weather, have led to increased demand for consumer health products. Likewise, the prevalence of self-medication persists due to limited hospital access, leading consumers to…

In general, consumer health in Kazakhstan is performing well towards the end of the review period. However, high inflation, increases in the costs of raw materials for the production of medicines and changed or disrupted logistics/supply routes have…

Sales of OTC products in Japan continue on the path to recovery in 2023 as the country sees an end to the pandemic. With the World Health Organisation (WHO) declaring the pandemic to be over in early 2023 there have been increased opportunities to go…

Overall consumer health is set to maintain growth in current value terms in 2023, although this is expected to be slower than in the previous three years. The pandemic has ceased to have a notable impact in Indonesia, and there are many categories…

Rising health awareness amongst consumers in India is set to lead to double-digit current value growth in consumer health in 2023. In the wake of the pandemic, people have undergone a transformative shift in their priorities, emphasising health and…

Post-pandemic 2023 saw lifted restrictions lead to the return of tourists to Hong Kong and a rebound in tourism consumption, particularly for OTC products. Mainland Chinese tourists, who were once a key consumer group for these products, began to…

Consumer health in China recorded high single-digit current value growth in 2022, mainly due to the COVID-19-related sales surge for OTC products, and this growth trend is set to continue in 2023, mainly due to rising health awareness. In terms of…

In 2023, Cambodia seems to have recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic. Meanwhile, consumer health demand is rising due to modernisation, urbanisation, and health risks from harmful chemicals. Nonetheless, challenges still exist, such as external…

In Bangladesh, consumer health faces the challenge of inflation across various categories in 2023. Meanwhile, consumer preferences are shifting towards modern medicine due to its perceived quick effectiveness, leading to a decline in demand for…

Consumer health in Azerbaijan is seeing something of a resurgence in 2023. New entrants are livening up the marketplace, and fresh medications are making their mark. The once-stringent Tariff Regulatory Authority has taken a step back, loosening the…

Consumer foodservice in Vietnam experienced positive growth in current value terms in 2023, albeit at a slower rate than the previous year. This was attributable to the elevated rate of inflation, which impacted household spending. With prices…

Despite persisting inflationary pressures, consumer foodservice in the Philippines recorded healthy growth in terms of current value and number of transactions in 2023, with the strong recovery of the economy being one of the main contributors to…

Consumer foodservice in Thailand registered a buoyant performance in 2023, with current value sales exceeding pre-pandemic levels. Growth was driven by the revival of normal lifestyle patterns, including the return of consumers to their physical…

Consumer foodservice has witnessed a strong recovery since the second half of 2022 in Taiwan, with robust growth continuing into 2023, albeit at slower pace. Menu prices have increased since the pandemic due to higher inflation. Many foodservice…

Despite optimistic expectations of rapid recovery in consumer consumption following the COVID-19 pandemic, transaction growth in overall consumer foodservice in South Korea experienced a slowdown in 2023, exacerbated by prolonged inflation. The…

In 2023, consumer foodservice in Singapore recorded moderate current value growth, signifying a marginal slowdown since the spikes of 2021 and 2022 when pandemic-related restrictions were first eased. The industry has had to contend with a number of…

In 2023, the Malaysian consumer foodservice market saw the continued strengthening of the country’s coffee drinking culture, which provided a notable boost to the performance of the specialist coffee and tea shops channel during the year. The end of…

Consumer foodservice continued to see strong recovery in Japan in 2023, posting double-digit growth in current value sales in line with the recovery of flows of consumers after the downgrading of the status of COVID-19. On 8 May 2023, the Japanese…

Consumer foodservice in Indonesia saw another year of positive growth in 2023, although current value sales remained well below pre-pandemic levels. Demand slumped in 2020, as the Community Activities Restrictions Enforcement (PPKM) put in place to…

Inflationary pressure drove continued current value growth in consumer foodservice in India in 2023. However, a slowdown in growth was seen compared with the previous two years, as 2022 had already seen full recovery to the pre-pandemic level of…

Consumer foodservice saw growth in outlet numbers and transaction volumes in Hong Kong in 2023, along with significant current value growth. 2023 was a year of recuperation for consumer foodservice players in Hong Kong. The previous few years,…

In 2023, consumer foodservice in China saw a robust recovery in terms of value sales and transaction volumes, benefiting from the relatively low base of 2022, when consumer foodservice outlets were severely negatively impacted by prolonged periods of…

With Vietnam having experienced a strong rebound in international and domestic tourism in 2023, this served to boost the number of consumer foodservice transactions made in travel, lodging and leisure locations. According to official sources, more…

Consumer foodservice through retail saw a strong performance in 2023, both in terms of current value growth and number of transactions. Sales were boosted by an increase in footfall in shopping malls and other retail establishments., as consumer…

In response to the revival of eat-in dining, foodservice players resumed their outlet expansion strategies in 2023. As in the previous year, retail was the most dynamic location in terms of growth in number of outlets, as operators looked to…

Most Taiwanese office workers eat out for lunch during the weekdays, with this shaping sales of consumer foodservice by location. In the north, most office workers either eat out in restaurants, get takeaway or order food on delivery for dinner as…

In 2023, the significant growth in sales of drive-through outlets was noteworthy. This method of fulfilment showed a triple-digit growth rate during COVID-19 in 2020, and still sustained double-digit current value growth in 2023. From a corporate…

Consumer foodservice through lodging in Singapore continued to record strong double-digit value growth in 2023, driven by a growing number of inbound tourists. The emergence of hotel-led food and beverage concepts reflects a notable trend within the…

Stand-alone remained the most popular consumer foodservice location in the Malaysian market in 2023. Most consumer foodservice operators opt for stand-alone locations for their outlets. There has been an increase in the number of consumer foodservice…