Canadians' views on the economy and the overall financial situation have hit a three-year low, according to a new poll from Nanos Research.
According to the results of a recent survey, Nanos' Pocketbook Sub-index, which measures Canadians' views on job security and their personal financial status, is at 89.8 points.
That score marks the lowest since 2008, when Nanos Research first began tracking how Canadians felt about their own financial outlook.
"A look across all the regions shows a noticeable level of asymmetry with Canadians in the West more likely to be optimistic compared to those in Ontario and Quebec. Likewise older Canadians are much more pessimistic than younger Canadians," the report states.
Nanos Research also revealed the results of its Expectations Index, which tracks Canadians' "forward-looking perceptions" on the economy.
Respondents were asked: "In the next six months, do you think the Canadian economy will become stronger, weaker or will there be no change?"
That index stands at 112.8, the lowest result in 2012 and a drop of 1.8 points from May.
When the results were broken down by age, Canadians from the ages of 18 to 29 were more likely to say the economy would get stronger in the next six months, while those 60 and older were more likely to say the economy would get worse.
And people in B.C. and the Prairies had a more positive outlook for the next six months than those in Atlantic Canada and Ontario and Quebec.
When factored together, the Pocketbook and Expectations Index result in the so-called Nanos Economic Mood Index, which is considered a measurement of Canadians' overall feeling about the economy.
The latest round of polling shows the Mood Index at 100.2 points, the lowest since the first quarter of 2009.
"This is largely a result of pessimistic forward views related to the economy," the survey said.
Methodology
Nanos Research surveyed a random representative sample of 1,000 people, online, between July 12 and 13, 2012.
The results were weighted using the latest census information and statistical testing suggests that the research is an accurate depiction of the views of Canadians at the time of the research.
