Increasing number of Asia Pacific women see a bright future: Survey

They're confident, hold the household purse-strings and earn good money: more women in the Asia Pacific area this year are feeling empowered and optimistic about the future after 2009's economic woes, a survey shows.                                           

The region's overall score in the MasterCard Worldwide Index of Women's Advancement rose to 85.57 this year compared to 84.47 in 2009, with women in half of the 14 countries surveyed - spanning from Australia to Japan - feeling their socioeconomic standing in relation to men had improved.                                           

The survey showed that even more women were signing up for university degrees and a slightly higher proportion of women perceive themselves to be earning above the average income -- 80 index points compared to 75 in 2009.                                          

"Women continue to make strides in labour force participation and tertiary education enrollment and we are glad to see this translating into a greater sense of self-worth," said Georgette Tan, MasterCard's vice president of communications for Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa.                                           

"This may explain the increased number of women who are viewing themselves as the major financial decision-maker in their households," Tan said in a statement.

The research, which surveyed 3,306 women and 3,316 men, uses an index to show relative improvements between men and women, with 100 meaning total equality between the sexes.

Numbers less than that favour men, while higher numbers favour women. The survey was conducted in Australia, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, India, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.

It showed that across the Asia Pacific region, female consumers were slightly more confident about the next six months compared to their male counterparts -- 66.8 vs. 65.7 -- driven by optimism about the economy, the stock market, their income, their jobs and overall quality of life.                                           

More women also see themselves as making most of the major financial decisions in their households, a dynamic seen in 11 of the 14 areas surveyed.

Australia, Hong Kong and Malaysia saw the greatest increase over last year in the percentage of women who perceive themselves as controlling the household's accounts, while Australian, Indian, New Zealand and Taiwanese women count themselves the most confident.                                           

In terms of purchasing priorities, more than 80 percent of women said they would be spending on household appliances, followed by dining and entertainment and then fashion and accessories.