PRINCETON, NJ -- Gallup Poll Daily tracking finds that Americans' views of the national economy remain gloomy. Just 25% of Americans rate current economic conditions as excellent or good, while 33% rate them as poor, according to polling conducted Jan. 30-Feb. 1. At the start of 2008, 30% of Americans rated the economy positively, and 24% rated it negatively, according to the initial tracking poll results from Jan. 2-4.
The latest update finds 77% of Americans saying that the economy is getting worse, while just 17% believe it is getting better. Beginning with the Jan. 16-18 tracking results and continuing through Jan. 25-27 polling, more than 8 in 10 Americans said the economy was moving in the wrong direction. Gallup has never seen those levels in the nearly 20 years it has asked this question. In recent days, negative perceptions have receded slightly, but they remain among the worst Gallup has ever measured.
Taking results of the two questions together, only 11% of Americans have a positive outlook on the economy -- believing that current conditions are either excellent or good, and that the economy is getting better or staying the same. -- Jeff Jones
Methodology: Gallup is interviewing 1,000 U.S. adults nationwide each day during 2008. The results reported here are based on 1,516 interviews conducted Jan. 30-Feb 1, 2008. For results based on this sample, the maximum margin of sampling error is ±3 percentage points. In addition to sampling error, question wording and practical difficulties in conducting surveys can introduce error or bias into the findings of public opinion polls.
