The Consumer Confidence Index, a quarterly survey conducted by the Middle East's number one job site - Bayt.com in conjunction with research specialists YouGov, found that the UAE moved up the index by 9.3 points, continuing the country's course of improved consumer confidence from the last quarter. The survey showed that respondents felt certain features of their economic positions were unchanged from the previous year. More than a third of respondents, 34%, felt that they were in the same financial position as last year, while the same number agreed that their country's economy was unchanged. Unsurprisingly, respondents are optimistic about the future.Almost half of respondents, 48%, said that they believe business conditions will be better, and 40% said they think their country's economy will improve in a year's time.Across the rest of the Middle East, consumer confidence levels showed a positive increase. Confidence in Kuwait rose the highest among the surveyed countries with an increase of 10.0 points, and as in the previous wave, Kuwait and the UAE retain the two top spots in terms of improved confidence. While Qatar followed with a strong increase of 9.0 points, the picture around the rest of the Gulf varied, with an increase of 5.1 points in Bahrain and 3.4 in Saudi Arabia. Despite being one of the only countries in the Middle East to record a consistent improvement in consumer confidence over the past year, Lebanon in this wave was the only country to deteriorate, moving down the index by 0.7 points. By comparison, Syria showed a significant improvement of 5.6 points.In North Africa, Egypt and Morocco topped the table in terms of improved consumer confidence, moving up 7.7 and 6.7 points respectively, contrasted with a move up the index of just 2.6 points in Algeria.The Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) is a measure of consumer expectations and satisfaction of various elements of the economy including inflation, job opportunities and the cost of living. "While we are not seeing massive jumps up the index, the data shows that there are steady improvements, which reflects what is being reported and felt in economies around the region- namely that things are starting to pick up. Improvements in the index have been seen in countries in the Middle East for around six months now, so the real test as to whether consumer confidence is being sustained and improved as a result of the easing of the recession, will become evident over the next year or so."commented Amer Zureikat, Bayt.com's Regional Manager.The CCI is in part gauged by asking the respondents about their personal financial situation, and whether they feel that they are better, or worse off than 12 months ago. In the UAE, 21% of respondents said they are better off than last year, while a slightly lower 40% of respondents said they were worse off - the highest figure amongst all surveyed countries. Around the region, respondents in Qatar recorded the most positive improvements in their financial positions: 35% stated their position was better than last year. The other countries in the GCC reported slight improvements in personal finances: 29% in KSA and 26% in Bahrain stated they were better off. Following the UAE, and in line with the results of the last wave, respondents in Jordan were similarly hard hit in terms of their personal finances, with 39% stating they are worse off.