SINGAPORE (Oct 21): Millennials prefer owning a car over public transportation or ride sharing, a recent survey found.
More surprisingly, more than 80% of Asian millennials surveyed have also shown interest in car ownership, despite traffic concerns common in most cities in this region.
These findings were revealed in the Millennials and Auto Trends Report released by consultancy firm Duff & Phelps on Friday.
Amongst other things, the global survey – which polled 2,150 millennials or people aged between 23 and 38 years old – found that concerns of millennials uninterested in car ownership are unfounded.
In Asia, 83% of those polled currently own or are now leasing a car plan to buy another vehicle in the next five years.
Meanwhile 55% of those polled who do not currently own or lease a car are planning to do so in the next five years.
Singapore and Hong Kong, however, reported lower levels of likely car owners. Only 46% of the respondents in Singapore currently own or leased a car, compared to China (89%), India (87%) and Japan (71%). In Hong Kong, that figure is at 62%.
This could be because of Hong Kong and Singapore’s efficient public transportation systems, as well as Singapore’s limits on the number of cars and high taxes on car ownership.
In Singapore, respondents also rank price high in the car-buying process followed by fuel efficiency and safety. They also rely heavily on public transportation, with 72% using it daily or between two and six times a week. Walking came in second at 66% and driving their car at 42%.
In summary, Duff & Phelps believes these results could signal a substantial uptick in car purchases soon.
“Regardless of qualifiers, the sentiment behind the findings is great news for an automotive industry currently enduring some global headwinds. However, it should be noted that 11% of respondents who do not currently own or lease a car never expect to get one, indicating a segment of the population that is likely unreachable.”
