Most Filipinos still risk-averse

Filipinos tend to be conservative when it comes to investing, as most still prefer to keep their income in cash rather than take risks in different investment instruments.

In its latest survey, the Manulife Investor Sentiment Index [MISI] showed that cash still accounted for 43 percent of the Filipino investors’ asset portfolio.

“The latest [MISI] highlights that in the Philippines, cash is still king,” the insurer said.

The Filipinos’ reluctance to invest in different asset and financial instruments was highlighted against a background of rising confidence in the country’s growth dynamics. In an earlier survey conducted across the region, Filipinos were most keen on investing in all the countries surveyed by the insurance firm, which included China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines.

The country shared the top spot with Malaysia as the region’s most optimistic in their respective local market conditions.

“Investors prefer holding cash as they see it as safe or less volatile, and readily available in case of an emergency,” Manulife Philippines President and CEO Ryan Charland said. “The survey also suggests they are worried about making the wrong investment decisions,” he added.

Manulife further said that most of the Filipino’s savings during the period was for particular financial goals, including retirement savings, general wealth accumulation or simply waiting for an investment opportunity.

“The latest survey suggests they remain very conservative, holding excess cash even if it means missing out on safe investment opportunities and their money being eroded by inflation,” Manulife said.

“Investors have reasonable concerns, but many may not realize they can address these through insurance,” the insurer said. –Bianca Cuaresma, Businessmirror