Europeans continue to feel insecure when it comes to their personal finances.
Six of the bottom eight countries in the latest Ipsos financial security monitor, a monthly survey carried out in 24 countries around the world, are EU member states.
Across all countries surveyed only a majority of citizens in India and Brazil feel financially secure.
The drop in China and Germany’s figures are both noticeable, and are likely feeding into both countries recent mixed economic results - and in Germany’s case, as are growing concerns over a wider continental slowdown. It is important to note though that from an historical point of view, the trend for both countries remains relatively high and in line with each state’s average levels.
Conversely, confidence in Mexico has increased by five points over the past month, which translates into a jump of four positions up the Ipsos index. Further down the rankings, confidence in the US and the UK is slightly up. While in Argentina and Russia, less than a third of citizens now feels financially secure. Closer to the bottom of the table, Japan’s score remains very low, reflecting the country’s recent fall back into recession.
Looking further at the specifics of the figures behind the financial security monitor, the UK’s improved economic performance continues to be reflected in how Britons view the country’s current situation. 41% describe the state of the economy as “good”. While someway below the 75% of Germans who view their country’s economy positively, the figure is above the global average, and on par with the US. It is also significantly higher than France and Spain - and this wasn’t the case just three years ago.
The gloom in French confidence now matches levels in Spain.
The survey found that Britons are now more confident than Germans when it comes to how citizens view their future financial situation. 27% feel their situation will be stronger in six months time, compared to 24% of Germans who feel the same way. In part this is explained by the fact that Germans start from a significantly higher view of their country’s economy (as the chart above clearly denotes), but on the other hand it also reflects the fact that when it comes to views on personal financial circumstances, the trend for the two countries is moving in opposite directions.
A similar picture in fact emerges when it comes to how comfortable Germans and Brits feel about making major purchases.
The index is calculated as an average of how people in each country view their current financial situation, how comfortable they feel about making a major purchase, and how they expect their situation to evolve over the next six months. It isn’t meant as a way to imply that a country’s economy is stronger or weaker when compared to other nations. It is a tool to gauge how citizens in each specific country feel about their personal financial circumstances; how their confidence now, compares to the past; and to monitor their outlook for the future - all relative to the context within each surveyed country.
Of the findings, Simon Atkinson, Assistant CEO of Ipsos Mori, says: “It’s rare for a pollster to be able to report that Britain is ahead of Germany on measures around economic confidence. But that’s exactly where we are today. The improvements over the last couple of years are bordering on the remarkable. In the wake of the Autumn Statement, George Osborne will be quietly pleased with these results.”
Methodology: Between 7 and 21 October, an international sample of 18,084 adults aged 18-64 in the USA and Canada, and aged 16-64 in all other countries, was interviewed via the Ipsos online panel system. Approximately 1,000 individuals participated in the survey from each country, with the exceptions of Argentina, Belgium, Hungary, Mexico, Poland, Romania, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Sweden and Turkey, where each has a sample of c.500 individuals. All data are weighted so as to balance demographics and to ensure that the sample’s composition reflects that of the adult population according to the most recent country Census data.
