Handbook of Markets and Economies: East Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia, New Zealand

East Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia, New Zealand

Anthony Pecotich, Clifford J Shultz

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2016
• eBook ISBN: 9781315498751
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Business General
• Index: Business

East and Southeast Asia is a vast and complex region. Its countries have a bewildering array of histories, demographics, economic structures, cultural backgrounds, and global marketing potential. This Handbook unravels the mystery. Each chapter is written by a country specialist and provides a thorough and up-to-date analysis of one of the ESEA countries. Each author follows a consistent model and covers geography and natural resources, the political system, the economic system, the social system, and the marketing environment. Complete chapters are devoted to: Australia, Brunei, Cambodia, China and Hong Kong, East Timor, Indonesia, Japan, Korea (North and South), Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam. Not just a review of current conditions, the Handbook offers prognoses for future marketing and commercial activity in each country. This definitive resource is generously illustrated with maps, figures, and tables, and includes comprehensive references and source materials for each country. It is an essential reference for students, researchers, and practitioners in the global economy.

CHAPTER 1

AUSTRALIA

Changing Consumer Behavior and Marketing

JANET R. MCCOLL-KENNEDY, SHARYN RUNDLE-THIELE, AND STEVE WARD

OVERVIEW

An overview of Australia in the new millennium is presented from a marketing and consumer behavior vantage point. After a brief historical introduction, the trends in the Australian environment, together with their implications for marketing management, are presented. The Australian economic climate is discussed, followed by the demographic, social, and cultural environment in Australia and the marketing implications. Australia is presented as a developed nation that has coped well with the recent global crises and that has an economy that is in good shape for the short-term future.

INTRODUCTION AND BRIEF HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

Australia, with about 19 million people living in an area approximately equal in size to the United States (minus Alaska), is located between the South Pacific and Indian oceans. The vast majority of Australia’s population can trace their origins to Europe. In the 2001 census, around four and half million Australians were born overseas, and close to three million people spoke a language other than English. In recent times, there has been an increasing proportion of Asian immigration. In 1981, around 50 percent of immigrants were from Europe, and only 2.7 percent were from Asia. By 1991, North Asia accounted for 20 percent of all arrivals compared to 20 percent from Europe (Australian Bureau of Statistics 1981, 1991). By 1999–2000, immigration from North- and Southeast Asia accounted for around 34 percent of all arrivals in Australia (Australian Bureau of Statistics 2003). As will be discussed, the changes in immigration patterns for Australia are significant, because given the low fertility rate (1.75), immigration is primarily responsible for future population growth. Changes in immigration patterns thus imply future changes in preferences and tastes and development of more diverse market niches within the country.

There is a small, yet culturally significant, indigenous Aboriginal community representing less than 2 percent of the population. Aboriginal visual and oral culture was included in the opening ceremony of the 2000 Olympics. There is worldwide interest in Aboriginal art, with motifs being used on everything from decorative ties to aircraft flown by the nation’s major airline carrier, Qantas.

To understand marketing and consumer behavior in Australia, it is important to briefly consider the nation’s historical development. European settlement commenced in 1788 in the form of a British penal colony. Transportation of convicts, many of whom were Irish, continued until 1840 (Hancock 1995). These convicts could gain a “ticket of leave” after serving their sentences in Australia. Thus, they formed the basis of the working class. This contrasts with the majority of free white settlers who were skilled Protestant artisans from England and Scotland who came to this new country in search of a better life. As a result, two distinct classes were emerging by the late 1800s—the Protestant urban upper class and the highly unionized and predominately Catholic labor force. There have been tensions between these groups for much of Australia’s history, and many cultural values of “a fair go,” egalitarianism, and distrust of authority (the tall poppy syndrome) can be traced back to conflicts between these two groups.

The great depression of the 1890s brought about high unemployment and lowered living standards. It was during this difficult time that a basic minimum wage was established to protect the workers. National identity was a key issue, and the Commonwealth of Australia was formally established in 1901, bringing together the individual colonies into a single federation (Hancock 1995). Soon after this, the “White Australia” policy was introduced. This meant that settlement was restricted to Europeans. This white migration policy continued until the 1960s, when immigrants from the Middle East as well as other European countries were allowed entry. Asian migration commenced in the 1970s, and this has continued until today, making Australia a truly multicultural society (Hancock 1995). In the 1960s and 1970s, thousands migrated to Australia to pursue their dreams, culminating, for many, in the “time of excess” of the early 1980s, when the focus was on spending. The economy went into a recession in the late 1980s, and this continued into the early 1990s. The consumer emphasis of the late 1990s was on maintaining personal relationships, obtaining value for money, and getting back to basics, including refocusing on the family and home (McColl-Kennedy 1998). At the turn of the twenty-first century, Australia experienced more positive growth, but this was tempered with a greater sense of uncertainty, with the tragic events of Bali in October 2002. Despite a hardy, historical pioneering rough-and-ready bush image, modern Australia is an urban community with a social structure centered in the cities, particularly on the east coast.

ECONOMIC CLIMATE

The economic climate of the country influences consumer behavior. Key measures of the relative health of the economy include inflation, gross domestic product, employment rates, the balance of payments, interest rates, and finally, exchange rates. The interrelationships between these and other economic factors clearly affect the well-being of Australians. As shown in Table 1.1, in recent times, Australia has enjoyed low inflation, under 2 percent, compared to over 6 percent in the 1980s and twice this in 1974. Unemployment is currently under 6 percent, down from almost 11 percent in the mid-1990s. Although the terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001, and in Bali in October 2002 have created uncertainty in the world economy, many leading economists suggest that Australia’s economy remains in relatively good shape and is well placed to absorb declines in the global economy despite the recent developments.

Economic Outlook

Reforms, including fiscal consolidation (e.g., tax reforms, debt reduction, and a reduction in balance of payment deficits), financial system reform, competition, and industrial restructuring, implemented largely during the 1990s, may ensure that the Australian economy remains in relatively good shape through the first decade of the new millennium, despite the global situation. The outlook of the Australian economy suggests that Australian consumers should remain optimistic and continue to spend, thus further stimulating the Australian economy. The latest figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) confirm this. Consumer expenditure on goods and services for the twelve months of 1999 had increased, on average, by 6 percent in real terms (taking out the impact of inflation) from a previous survey in 1993–94 (Australian Bureau of Statistics 2000). Over the same time period, average weekly earnings had increased in real terms by 12 percent. The ten-year trend (1991–2001) for the growth of consumption expenditure, as shown in Figure 1.1, shows an average real growth of 2.2 percent per year. While it is believed that increases in real incomes have driven increases in consumption, consumer debt commitments have also increased. At the end of 1994, they stood at A$4.39 billion, and at the end of 2003 they had more than doubled to A$18.40 billion (Australian Bureau of Statistics 2004). Of concern to a consumer-driven economy like Australia has been the decline of household disposable (after-tax) income. In 1959–60, this stood at 88 percent of gross income, and by 1999–2000, it had fallen to 76 percent of gross income (Australian Bureau of Statistics 2004). The long-term viability of the present consumer boom in t...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Half Title Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• Foreword
• Acknowledgments
• Introduction
• Chapter 1 Australia Changing Consumer Behavior and Marketing
• Chapter 2 Brunei Darussalam Consumption and Marketing in an Islamic Monarchy
• Chapter 3 Cambodia Striving for Peace, Stability, and a Sustainable Consumer Market
• Chapter 4 The People's Republic of China Markets within the Market
• Chapter 5 East Timor Realizing Its Potential
• Chapter 6 Indonesia Transition at a Crossroads
• Chapter 7 Japan A Crisis of Confidence in the World's Second Largest Economy
• Chapter 8 Korea Two Countries, Sharp Contrasts, but a Common Heritage
• Chapter 9 Laos Emerging Market Trends and the Rise of Consumers and Entrepreneurs
• Chapter 10 Malaysia Toward Prosperity with Harmony and Diversity
• Chapter 11 Myanmar Foreign Brands Trickling Through
• Chapter 12 New Zealand Consumers in Their Market Environment—Profiles and Predictions
• Chapter 13 Papua New Guinea Marketing and Consumer Behavior
• Chapter 14 The Philippines Marketing and Consumer Behavior—Past, Present, and Future
• Chapter 15 Singapore Marketing, Macro Trends, and Their Implications for Marketing Management for 2005 and the Years Beyond
• Chapter 16 Taiwan Euphoria and Paranoia on the Emerging Greater China Economy
• Chapter 17 Thailand Consumer Behavior and Marketing
• Chapter 18 Vietnam Expanding Market Socialism and Implications for Marketing, Consumption, and Socioeconomic Development
• About the Editors and Contributors
• Index