HALIFAX, March 24, 2022
After a period of slow recovery since the beginning of the pandemic, consumer confidence in Atlantic Canada has declined over the past six months, reaching a new low of 73.8.
More than 25 years ago Narrative Research created Atlantic Canada’s Consumer Confidence Index (CCI). Initially set at 100, this index has proven to be sensitive to national, regional, and international events.
Consumer confidence has been substantially impacted by the pandemic, hitting a record low in May 2020, near the pandemic onset. Atlantic Canadians’ consumer confidence slowly started to recover since that time, but that recovery halted towards the end of 2021, well before a full recovery. Consumer confidence dropped 8.6 points in November 2021 from August 2021, and this quarter, it has dropped another 7.4 points, now resting at an all time low of 73.8.
“These are unprecedented times in our region, with a multitude of factors impacting the consumer psyche,” said Margaret Brigley, CEO of Narrative Research. “While there is reason to be optimistic with evidence of a good job market recovery, and provinces easing mandates and restrictions, Atlantic Canadians are clearly concerned about their current and future financial wellbeing. A reluctance in making major purchases, increased prices, the cost of inflation, and escalating home prices all contribute to an overall decline in consumer confidence.”
Consumer confidence in all four provinces has trended downward over the past six months, although at varying rates. PEI (80.5) remains the province with the highest CCI in the region, while Newfoundland and Labrador continues to have the lowest CCI score (65.8). Comparatively, Nova Scotia’s CCI score has dropped to 76.9, while New Brunswick’s CCI stands at 74.2.
Across age segments, consumer confidence is lowest among older residents (70.0 for 55+ and 72.8 for 35-54) and highest among those aged 18-34 years (82.2). It is also lower among those with household incomes below $50K (65.3) compared with those with higher household incomes (73.4 for $50K-<$100K and 84.4 for $100K+).
These results are part of Narrative Research’s Atlantic Quarterly®, an independent, quarterly telephone survey of Atlantic Canadians, and are based on a sample of 1,450 adult Atlantic Canadians, conducted from February 8-23, 2022, with overall results accurate to within ± 2.5 percentage points, 95 out of 100 times.
Narrative Research, www.narrativeresearch.ca, is one of Canada’s leading public opinion and market research companies. Narrative Research provides clients with state-of-the-art research and strategic consulting services. Follow us on Twitter at @EveryNarrative.
For more information, contact:
Margaret Brigley, CEO, Narrative Research – 902.222.7066, mbrigley@narrativeresearch.ca
OR
Margaret Chapman, COO, Narrative Research – 902.222.4048, mchapman@narrativeresearch.ca
