Nearly 80% of Americans forecasting economic difficulty in new year, poll finds
Nearly two-thirds expressed pessimism about prices in 2023
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Many adults in the U.S. have dark predictions for how America will fare economically in 2023, according to recent polling.
Gallup said Tuesday that one of its polls found 79% of U.S. adults projected a "year of economic difficulty" for 2023.
Less than a quarter of Americans, 20%, were more optimistic when asked whether prosperity or struggle would be more likely, anticipating "economic prosperity" for the country, according to the poll.
There was also pessimism about inflation in 2023, the poll found.
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Rising inflation (iStock / iStock)
Inflation measured by the Consumer Price Index continues to hover around painfully high levels, though it did cool somewhat in November, as earlier reported by FOX Business. It went up 0.1% from the prior month and 7.1% year-over-year in November.
According to Gallup, 65% of U.S. adults predict it is more likely prices "will rise at a high rate" in 2023.
Americans were less pessimistic about employment in 2023, with 53% giving predictions of more unemployment and 46% anticipating "full or increasing" employment, per the polling.
A young businesswoman rubs her eyes while working alongside a colleague in an office. (iStock / iStock)
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The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported the unemployment rate in November was 3.7%. It has "been in a narrow range of 3.5% to 3.7% since March," the agency said in its December release.
In the same Gallup poll, slightly less than two thirds, 63%, said they predicted the stock market will go down in 2023.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SP500 | S&P 500 | 6032.38 | +33.64 | +0.56% |
| DJIA | GLOBAL X FDS DOW 30 COVERED CALL ETF | 23.60 | +0.03 | +0.13% |
| IXIC | NO DATA AVAILABLE | - | - | - |
The S&P 500 has fallen over 20% over the past year, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average has dropped about 9.8%.
In the same time frame, the Nasdaq Composite has seen a roughly 34% decrease.
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As of 3 p.m. ET Tuesday, the S&P, Dow and Nasdaq indexes were down about 0.54%, 0.25% and 0.8% respectively.
A large percentage of Americans, the poll also found, had a negative outlook about taxes. About 81% indicated they thought a "year when taxes will rise" was more probable for 2023 than a decrease.
Capitol building in Washington, D.C. (iStock / iStock)
Additionally, over three-quarters (78%) are anticipating the federal government making its budget deficit larger, according to the poll.
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The Gallup poll involved over 1,800 adults and was conducted between Dec. 5 and Dec. 19 online. It had a 3% margin of error.