KEY POINTS:
The failure of more finance companies and fears about the US credit crisis had failed to dampen the confidence of high net worth New Zealand investors by November last year, an ING survey has found.
The second in a series of quarterly research studies questioned more than 1300 investors with assets of more than US$100,000 ($131,372) across 13 Asia Pacific countries on their current and future economic and investment sentiments.
New Zealand was one of six countries in which sentiment had improved between the surveys, rising from 114 points to 118 although the overall sentiment remains at the lower end of those surveyed.
India's investors were the most optimistic about the outlook for their economy while Japan's were the least optimistic. ING New Zealand chief executive Mark Lieberman said until recently New Zealanders appeared relatively unconcerned by the impact of the sub-prime mortgage crisis.
"The results didn't change all that much [between the surveys].
"It was done in late November but if we did it again today it might not be so positive."
The second survey also reinforced New Zealand's love of conservative investments such as property and fixed income.
When asked what their investment strategy would be for 2008, 44 per cent of New Zealand respondents said they planned to have a conservative long-term approach - more than double the 21 per cent of Australians.
While 50 per cent of New Zealand investors said they would take a balanced approach, only 7 per cent said they would take an aggressive approach - also the lowest level of the 13 countries.
Lieberman said the conservative New Zealand approach came as no surprise but finance company debentures, which have in the past been considered to be a conservative investment were likely to have dropped off the investor radar because of the increased awareness of their risks.
