The latest Gallup survey has revealed a decline in Americans’ confidence in the economy by nine points, marking the first decrease since the fall. This comes as the Gallup Economic Confidence Index, which reflects public perception of current economic conditions, dropped to -29 in April from -20 in March.
The index has a potential range of +100 to -100, with +100 representing all individuals rating the economy as good and -100 indicating all people rating it as poor. According to Gallup’s report, 24 percent of U.S. adults view economic conditions as “excellent” or “good,” 32 percent say conditions are “only fair,” and 44 percent rate them as “poor.”
This data shows a decrease in positive ratings compared to the previous month, with an increase in the percentage of individuals who view economic conditions as poor. The decline in economic confidence was observed across all political affiliations in April.
For instance, despite Democrats traditionally being more optimistic about the economy, their confidence decreased by four points, from 35 to 31. Similarly, independents saw a decline of 10 points, dropping from -28 to -38. Republicans recorded a significant decrease in confidence by nine points, falling from -62 to -71.
Despite this recent drop in confidence, historical data from Gallup shows that Americans have indicated a perception of improving economic conditions over time. The overall index reached its lowest point at -72 in October 2008 and increased thereafter. However, during the initial phases of the COVID-19 pandemic, the index plummeted from +41 in February 2020 to -32 in April 2020 before briefly rebounding with positive values in April and June 2021 before generally remaining negative since then.
The survey was conducted between April 1-22 amid rising gas prices and inflation, fluctuating stock markets and high interest rates. It included 1