New Delhi: Indian investors are the most optimistic across Asian markets over the first three months of the year, even as India, like the rest of Asia is not protected against the uncertainty in the global market, according to a survey by ING.

The survey says that though India retained first place in being the most optimistic market during the first three months of 2008, the 0.6 per cent rise in investor sentiment was minuscule compared to the previous quarter. During the first quarter of calender year 2007, India's investor sentiment index was 167, and rose to 168 for the first quarter of 2008.

ING's Investor Dashboard survey tracks and measures investor sentiment and behaviour for mass affluent investors, every quarter, from 13 Asia-Pacific markets including India, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Taiwan, Thailand, Japan, Australia and New Zealand. Each market covered is assigned an investor sentiment score ranging from 0 (signifying least optimistic) to 200 (most optimistic).

With the region dealing with the impact of the sub-prime crisis, global credit crunch and the economic slowdown in the US, the ING Investor Dashboard's pan-Asia sentiment index fell to 125 this past quarter from 135 in Q4 2007.

Despite the decline, pan-Asian investor sentiment remained within the optimistic level. China and India reflected the highest level of investor optimism, with index scores at 136 and 168 respectively. About 67 per cent of investors in India, and more than 73 per cent respondents from Asia (other than Japan) expect the sub-prime crisis to impact their investment decisions in the April-June quarter this year.

According to ING investment management managing director and CEO for India Vineet K Vohra, it is not surprising to find that investor sentiment has fallen in Asia over the last two quarters, as the reality is that markets around the world are linked and Asia is, therefore, not spared the effects of the credit crunch and a slowdown in the US economy.

He says, however, that the survey shows investors in fast growing markets like India and China appear more optimistic, despite the global market uncertainty. This is primarily because they have a 'young' investor base, which tends to be more positive in its investment outlook, and their domestic economies are still strong.

The survey also sheds some light on the fact that Indian investors seem to be getting more aggressive on the stock markets, as they reduce their property allocation. It says that India as an investment destination seems to be ''losing some of its flavour'' though it is still a popular destination for future investments among investors in most markets who are open to investing overseas.