B.C. consumer confidence rose nearly four times more than the national average in September, leaving British Columbians far more confident than their counterparts across the country, according to a September 26 Conference Board of Canada report.
B.C.’s consumer confidence level jumped 24.7 points to 110.8, which is more confident than consumers have been all year.
Canada-wide, consumer confidence rose 6.7 points to 82.2.
B.C.’s soaring confidence was driven by “broad-based improvements on all four questions” that the Ottawa-based think tank asked survey respondents.
The questions were:
•Has your financial situation improved, stayed the same or worsened in the past six months?
- Do you expect your financial situation to improve in the next six months?
- Do you expect more jobs in your community in six months’ time? and
- Is now a good time to make a major purchase (such as a house or a car)?
“Optimism [in B.C.] was particularly strong on the current finances question,” the report said. “It was the first time that the balance of opinion on this question has been positive in B.C. since April 2008.”
