Consumer confidence has dropped 10 points since March, according to the third-quarter Connecticut Consumer Confidence Survey. The malaise is largely based on a negative perception of the job market.
According to the survey, released by InformCT, a public-private partnership, slightly more respondents – now nine in 10 – believe there are not enough jobs and jobs are difficult to get, and more people believe it will get worse or stay the same than at the end of March 2015.
The research provides a measure of the strength of the Connecticut economy as well as a gauge of select economic factors. Administered for InformCT by the Connecticut Economic Resource Center (CERC) and Smith & Co., the analysis is based on the responses of residents across the state and addresses economic issues such as overall confidence, reactions to housing prices, upscale consumer purchases, leisure spending and current investments.
Among other findings:
- Respondents who agree (strongly or somewhat) that the Connecticut economy is improving has dropped 10 points, from end of March to end of September, from one-third to less than one-quarter.
- The percentage of those who would make a major consumer expenditure has dropped 10 points since the end of Q1 – from more than one-third to just one-quarter (26 percent).
- Those who would refinance or purchase a home dropped by one-third, from 18 percent to 12 percent, from Q1 to Q3.
- The percentage of respondents concerned about being able to afford health insurance has edged up, from 53 percent to 55 percent.
