BEIJING, June 3 (Reuters) - Chinese consumers are much more optimistic about the future than their American and European counterparts and are more likely to increase spending in the coming 12 months, according to a survey by Boston Consulting Group (BCG) issued on Wednesday.
Three out of four Chinese respondents said they would boost, or at least maintain, spending in the coming year, compared with 27 percent in the United States and 36 percent in Europe.
BCG polled surveyed 21,800 consumers in 13 countries, including 2,600 in urban China, between October and March.
"While China is not immune to the global economic downturn, it remains as a bright spot," the consulting firm said in a statement releasing the survey.
Chinese consumers are more willing to spend mainly because they have greater confidence in the economic outlook, Carol Liao, a partner and managing director of BCG, told a media briefing.
Only 23 percent of those Chinese surveyed said the economy would worsen in the next 12 months, in sharp contrast to 56 percent of respondents in the United States and 60 percent in Europe.
The BCG findings are consistent with official figures showing sturdy consumption despite a slump in the export and property sectors that has sharply cut overall growth and cost an estimated 23 million migrant workers their jobs.
Retail sales rose 14.9 percent in the 12 months to April, while per capita spending in urban areas rose 9.6 percent in the first quarter.
Beijing is trying hard to stimulate consumer spending to offset the slump in global demand and has introduced subsidies for buyers of fuel-efficient cars and household appliances. (Reporting by Zhou Xin and Alan Wheatley; Editing by Ken Wills)