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2010: Trends and realities, Part I

January 4, 2010 10:35 by Precious de Leon

2010 is the Year of the Tiger not just because the Chinese calendar says so. It’s also because it’s the year which will reveal those brands resilient enough to claw their way back from the carnage of 2009.

Tigers are fierce, self-reliant, alert and farsighted. They are also highly adaptable, equally as happy in the mountains of Siberia as in the mangroves of Asia. Brand guardians-agencies and marketers alike-would do well to copy these cats.

Among the best-known characteristics of tigers, however, is that, like all felines, they always land on their feet.

So, armed with a renewed sense of hope that only a new year can bring, let’s look at what we’ve got to work with from here on…

After a slew of subsidies and bailouts, governments around the world are looking to consumers to replace them as a catalyst for sustained economic growth in the wake of the recession, according to the Merrill Lynch Wealth Management Year Ahead 2010 study.

The study forecasts that the global economy will grow by 4.3 percent this year – after shrinking 0.9 percent last year – with consumer spending and borrowing expected to rise as the threat of unemployment wanes and household incomes recover. This, however, is most likely to occur in the second half.

In terms of GDP growth by country in the region, Saudi Arabia is set to grow by 3.1 percent this year, followed by a 2011 forecast of 4.5 percent – a welcome rise compared to the 0.2 percent drop in 2009.

Over in the UAE, GDP is likely to stay put from its 1 percent drop last year. This is due to the ongoing deleveraging for a number of the country’s major companies. While Kuwait, on the other hand, saw a 1.9 percent drop last year, it is expected to enjoy a 2 percent increase in 2010 and a further 4.5 percent rise in 2011.

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Tags: 2009, 2010, brands, Financial Crisis, gcc, marketing, new year