The Blubber

Per WSJ

A December 3-7 poll of 1,500 registered voters by the WSJ found that two-thirds think the 2023 economy will be worse. The survey showed that Republicans had the strongest pessimism, while only almost a quarter of Democrats shared the same sentiments.

The article says that the negative outlooks on 2023's economic situation come despite moderate gas prices and inflation slowing down. In line with multiple economists' forecasts, most respondents still fear the risk of a recession.

One example of a respondent that feared a recession happening in America came from a poll participant that identified as Republican, David Rennie, aged 61. Rennie was a retired executive with the Boy Scouts of America and shared how the real problem was interest rates.

Rennie: “I just think we are headed toward a recession and it could be a pretty big one... Interest rates are skyrocketing and that’s going to take us down.”

The poll found that 83% of Republicans expect the economy to go south, while only 22% of Democrats shared this sentiment. Regarding the democratic perspective, a poll participant, Kendra Lewis, shared similar perspectives on the economy.

Ms. Lewis, a business consultant and entrepreneur aged 38, shared how her environment, highlighting small businesses, is acting like there is already a recession. She then shared how entrepreneurs fear investment and expansion within the economic climate.

Lewis: “I’ve seen a drastic contraction in what people are willing to spend... When entrepreneurs are scared to invest and expand, that trickles down to a lot of other things in the economy.”

The poll showed that 66% of respondents said things were heading wrong. Before the elections, the number of people who felt the economy was going the wrong way was at 71%.

The poll was reportedly conducted by Impact Research and Fabrizio, Lee & Associates.

See flow at unusualwhales.com/flow.

Other News:

• Global Billionaires Lost Almost $2 Trillion in 2022: American Billionaires Lost $660 Billion
• American Retirement Age Increased from 62.6 in 2021 to 64 in 2022

Resources:

The Wall Street Journal

The Wall Street Journal Poll