Investors more confident about their personal finances than the economy

The index shows that Canadians are more satisfied with their personal financial situation (65%) and feel more secure about their employment situation (55%), compared to two years ago.

When it comes to ensuring that they have sufficient savings to retire, three-quarters of them (76%) believe they play the most important role, followed by government authorities (56%), employers (52%) and financial institutions (39%).

“In spite of the many contradictory economic forecasts and predictions published over the last few weeks about how the Canadian economy will fare in 2014, several measures in the Standard Life Investor Confidence Index show improvement,” said David MacDonald, group vice president, Environics Research Group.

“Various research and data, in addition to our own, are showing encouraging signs. A subset of Canadians has already taken advantage of the market movements, but the vast majority is not there yet,” said Anna DelBalso, associate vice president, market and business intelligence, Standard Life.

“While investors are satisfied with their own financial situation, most of them still seem concerned about the economy and more focused on protecting their capital rather than maximizing their investments. We believe they could be more proactive, speak with their advisors and choose investment vehicles to access the growth potential of the market,” she added.

Developed as an approach based on social values, the Standard Life Investor Confidence Index aims to better understand investors’ confidence and satisfaction by asking them where their personal finance, investments and the overall economy fit into their broader life goals and concerns.

This year, the index is based on the online answers of 1,501 Canadians, aged 18 years+, surveyed between Oct. 20 and 24, 2013 by Environics Research Group.