Consumer confidence is higher now than it was in November of last year and people are also felling better about their fiances, according to the latest Harris/Decima-Investor’s Group Measure of Consumer Confidence.
The overall measure of consumer confidence increased from 82.8 in November 2010 to 86.2 today. Nineteen percent of respondents said they were better off financially compared to a year ago—a 3% hike over the Q4 2010 results. However, 21% feel they are worse off, down from 23% from the Q4 results.
And, 31% believe they will be better off a year from now, up from the 27% recorded in the last wave. Conversely, 13% feel they will be worse off a year from now, essentially unchanged from the 12% recorded in the previous wave.
According to Harris/Decima senior vice-president Doug Anderson, “The rise in consumer confidence can be attributed in large part due to a rise in confidence about the short term outlook for both the economy overall and for the personal outlook of Canadians. This increased confidence in the one-year outlook suggests that Canadians are becoming more comfortable with the trajectory of the economy and their own personal financial situation.”
But while consumers are feeling better about current and short-term future of their finances, the 2011 Canadian Unretirement Index, released by Sun Life Financial today, has found that people are less confident about their retirement preparedness.
The survey found that the average Canadian expects to retire at age 68—three years later than respondents reported in the same study a year ago.
The economic downturn has had the most significant impact on the retirement expectations among those earning less than $50,000 per year and they expect to retire later—at age 70 on average—as a result. Canadians who earn over $100,000 expect, on average, to retire at the traditional age of 65.
As Canadians age and approach the traditional retirement time frame, they anticipate working longer than younger Canadians predict, the poll shows. Canadians in their thirties and forties expect to retire at age 67, while those in the 60 to 65 age group expect to retire at 72.
Canadians’ financial priorities are also shifting, according to the survey. Paying down personal loans, credit cards, and other debt is now taking precedent of saving for retirement or even housing.