The latest Gallup poll, released on Wednesday, showed that half of Americans believe they are worse off financially than they were a year ago, marking the highest level of decline since the financial crisis.
These results are a stark contrast to the optimistic state of the economy, with unemployment being at its lowest since 1969 and job openings being at or near historical records.
However, it’s not all bad news. The survey results suggest that the high toll of inflation on the financial situation of Americans is the main cause of this decline, with average hourly and weekly wages declining for the second consecutive year in 2022.
Higher interest rates and the decline in the stock market have also weighed on people’s view of their financial situation.
Despite President Biden’s promises to “build an economy from the bottom up and the middle out, not from the top down,” lower-income Americans are far more likely to report that they are worse off during the second year of his administration.
A staggering 61% of households with incomes under $40,000 reported that they were worse off, with just 26% reporting that they were better off. This is a big jump from last year when only 41% of lower-income Americans reported that they were worse off.
The results of the survey also show that partisan politics may be playing a role in how people evaluate their personal finances, with 61% of Republicans saying they are worse off, while only 37% of Democrats say that.
On the other hand, 47% of Democrats report that they are better off.
Despite these grim findings, many Americans appear to believe that the worst is behind them. Sixty percent expect to be better off a year from now, and this optimism is shared across the income spectrum.
However, Americans expect economic conditions to deteriorate in the future, with inflation, unemployment, and interest rates expected to rise, while economic growth and stock prices are expected to decline.
In conclusion, the latest Gallup poll shows that half of Americans believe they are worse off financially than they were a year ago, marking the highest level of decline since the financial crisis.
Despite this, many Americans remain optimistic and believe that the worst is behind them. The results of the survey suggest that the high toll of inflation on the financial situation of Americans is the main cause of this decline, but partisan politics may also be playing a role.
