A global survey of more than 32,000 respondents in 28 countries found that people’s optimism about their own economies is experiencing a “massive collapse” globally, leading to distrust of governments. , indicating rising fears of unemployment and economic inflation.
Global economic optimism has fallen from 50% in 2022 and 53% in 2019 to 40% in 2023, according to the 2023 Edelman Trust Barometer. reportHalf of the respondents in the countries participating in the survey recorded a double-digit year-on-year decline in believing their families would be ‘better off’ five years from now. Among the developed countries, more than 36% of her respondents believed that their families would get better within this time period, in no single country did he.
Of the 28 countries surveyed, 24 saw their lowest level of optimism ever. Only 30% are optimists in the US, 23% in the UK, 15% in Germany and 9% in Japan.
89% of respondents felt personal financial anxiety, including loss of income, followed by inflation at 74%. When it comes to social fears, climate change tops the list at 76%, nuclear war at 72% and food insecurity at 67%.
“We are in a time of profound systemic change in a multipolar world where the forces of division are fueling economic discontent,” said Edelman’s global vice president of corporate affairs, according to a Jan. 15 email. said Dave Samson, Press release.
“Failure to do so will result in greater polarization, slower economic growth, deeper discrimination and insolvency.”
Institutional trust, class divide
Governments are untrusted in 16 out of 28 countries: 42% in the US, 37% in the UK, 33% in Japan and 20% in Argentina.
Media is distrusted in 15 countries, with 43% in the US.
Among institutional leaders, CEOs were trusted by only 48% of respondents, followed by journalists by 47% and government leaders by 41%. These three he was the leader of the least trusted agency. In contrast, the scientist was the most trusted organizational leader, earning 76% of respondents trust him, followed by 73% for ‘my colleague’ and 64% for ‘my CEO’. .
We found that businesses have a 53-point lead over government when it comes to capabilities. When it came to ethics, we held a 30-point lead.
Edelman CEO Richard Edelman said:
“But companies need to act with caution. I’m not thinking.”
Classification of trust was also observed. In a recent survey of high-income earners, the average trust level for institutions has risen from 50 in 2012 to 62. Among low-income earners, this confidence only rose from 43 to 48.
business, consumer optimism
Several other recent surveys also show waning optimism among businesses and consumers in the United States.
The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index fell 2.1 points in December, marking the 12th consecutive month below the 49-year average.
NFIB Chief Economist Bill Dunkelberg said: “Overall, small business owners are less optimistic about 2023, with weaker sales and business conditions expected.
“The owners are managing some economic uncertainty and sustained inflation and are continuing to make business and operational changes to compensate.”
McKinsey’s American Opportunity Study (AOS) report People’s view of access to economic opportunities has become increasingly negative, dropping from 99 in April 2022 to 85 in November 2022.
Lack of optimism was found to be “common to all income levels, genders and ages,” with the steepest declines seen between 25 and 34 years old.
Naveen Athrappully is a news reporter covering business and world events for The Epoch Times.