India ranked lowest in basic money mgmt skills: MasterCard

India has been ranked lowest in basic money management skills among Asia-Pacific countries, according to MasterCard's latest Index of Financial Literacy.

India with 59 index points was ranked at the 15th place among the 16 countries surveyed ahead of Japan which was at the bottom with 57 index points.

In overall financial literacy, New Zealand continued to rank number one with a score of 74 index points, ahead of Singapore (72 index points) and Taiwan (71 index points).

"Even though India's overall index is low, it is heartening that the country has showed improvement on the parameter of financial planning," Ari Sarker, MasterCard South Asia Division President, said.

Sarkar further said: "Overall, however, the index highlights clear gaps in the financial literacy space and the need to inculcate better budgeting, savings and responsible credit habits."

The survey was conducted between April 2013 and May 2013 with 7,756 respondents aged between 18 and 64 in 16 Asia- Pacific countries.

The survey was conducted on three aspects of financial literacy, including consumers' basic money management skills, investment knowledge and financial planning.

In terms of basic money management, India has slipped five index points lower as compared to last year. India scored 50 index points, down from 55 index points in the 2012 H1 survey. New Zealand retained its top ranking in basic money management with the index at 77 points.

Myanmar ranked top in terms of financial planning with the highest index score of 88 index points, up 2 index points from 2012 H2, which involves savings and planning for the unexpected and retirement.

India also showed notable improvements from 72 index points in 2012 H1 to 76 index points in the current wave of the survey. However, it is still among the bottom 5 in the Asia-Pacific region.

In terms of investment knowledge, Asia-Pacific's overall index score dropped marginally from 59 index points in the previous survey to 58 index points.

China topped the ranking with a score of 68 index points, up three points from the previous survey. India showed a slight improvement with a score of 57 index points compared to 55 index points in the previous survey.