The Nielsen consumer confidence index, which measures interviewees' job prospects, readiness to spend and personal finance, rose 14 points from the second quarter to 93 for the third quarter.

Nielsen Hong Kong managing director Oliver Rust said he was expecting a rebound but is surprised at the size of it.

Hong Kong's 14-point rise is the most marked among the 54 markets reviewed, with the global average index rise being only four. China rose six points to 101.

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Only Japan and Spain recorded lower indexes.

"We can see the tide is turning. These figures show the whole world is going from a recession mindset to a rebound mindset," Rust said.

He attributes the rise in Hong Kong to improving job prospects and the prosperous property and stock markets.

Of the 500 interviewees, 41 percent described their job prospects as "good" or "excellent" last month compared with only 5 percent in April.

"In April, Hong Kong was one of the world's top 10 most pessimistic places regarding local job prospects," Rust said. "Today it is one of the world's most optimistic markets. It demonstrates how quickly consumer sentiment for the domestic labour market and the economy has rebounded."

According to the survey, consumers' willingness to spend also rebounded to nearly the level it was before the economic crisis.

Interviewees willing to spend on vacations rose from 6 percent in April to 39 percent last month, which is similar to last year's figure

Polytechnic University researcher Sherriff Luk Ting-kwong said the sharp increase is due to a really low base in the last survey.

Luk added the surge in the stock market and tourists from the mainland also played a role in portraying a prosperous outlook to the public.