A new survey has found that most Canadians are pessimistic about the economic outlook and their country’s finances in 2024.
An online survey conducted by Pollara Strategic Insights found that 52% of respondents think Canada’s economy will worsen this year, while 24% expect the economy to remain the same and 15% expect it to improve. That’s what I found out. Pessimism about the state of Canada’s economy was highest in Quebec and lowest in Ontario.
Additionally, 82 per cent of respondents nationally said they believe Canada is in a recession. This is the third-highest total since polling on this question began in 2001, Pollara said.
Canada has yet to experience two consecutive quarters of negative GDP growth, a valid definition of a technical recession often used in the media. some economists say Given that immigration drives much of Canada’s positive economic growth, Canada is already in recession on a per capita basis.
Nearly half (46%) expect to fall behind economically in 2024, but 38% expect they will be able to keep up and 8% think they will be able to keep up. .
Additionally, food prices remain the top financial concern for Canadians, with 44 per cent citing food costs as their main source of stress, followed by housing costs, gas prices and heating costs. Stress on gas prices has decreased since last year, as gas prices have fallen significantly from their peak in June 2022, exceeding $2 per liter in most cities.
The cost of groceries at the supermarket is a top concern across all regions and age groups. However, people in Atlantic Canada are more likely to worry about their home heating bill compared to other regions, with 37 per cent of Atlantic Canada residents saying this is a major source of stress. In Atlantic Canada, nearly a third of households rely on household heating oil, which is unusual in other parts of Canada. more expensive Better than other types of home heating systems.
Younger Canadians were also more likely to perceive housing costs as a major stressor. While 45% of respondents aged 18 to 34 said this was a major source of stress, only 19% of those aged 65 and over said the same.
When homeowners who have paid off their mortgages were asked how they would describe their feelings about their personal finances, the two most common responses were “confident” and “calm.” Meanwhile, renters and homeowners paying their mortgages said they were feeling “anxious” and “upset.”
19% of respondents said they or a family member were likely to lose their job in the next 12 months, a decline from 2021, when 35% reported being concerned about the possibility of job loss. is reflected. Fear of job loss was most common among people in blue-collar jobs, with 34% answering “yes” to this question.
methodology
Pollara conducted an online survey between December 6 and 11, 2023 among a randomly selected sample of 1,503 adult Canadians. The margin of error is +/- 2.6% 19 out of 20 times, and the data is weighted using gender. Age and region population data from the latest Canadian census.
Using files from BNNBloomberg.ca