British Columbians are more worried about the health of the provincial economy than they were a year ago, according to an Insights West poll released January 21.
In November 2014, 67% of poll respondents described B.C.’s economy as good or very good. That number has dropped to 47%, while 48% say the economy is poor, up from 26%.
The low price of oil continues to weigh on Canada’s economy, leading the Bank of Canada to downgrade its economic growth forecast from 2% to 1.4% on January 20. However, British Columbia is expected to perform relatively well compared to more oil-dependent provinces like Alberta and Newfoundland and Labrador: economists expect B.C. to have economic growth of around 3% this year, the highest in the country.
The Bank of Canada opted to keep interest rates at 0.5% this week. There had been a concern that lowering interest rates further would send a negative signal to Canadians about the state of the economy and erode consumer confidence.
The Canadian dollar has fallen along with the price of oil and now sits at US$0.70. While the low dollar benefits B.C. industries like tourism, film and manufacturing, consumers are feeling the pinch of higher costs for food and other goods.
According to the poll, British Columbians are increasingly saying they plan to cut back on discretionary spending like entertainment, clothes, restaurant meals and travel. Poll respondents expect to spend more on food (93%) and real estate (71%) over the next six months.
Poll respondents who voted for the BC Liberals in 2013 are more optimistic about the economy than those who voted for the BC New Democratic Party (NDP), with 35% of Liberal voters saying they expect the economy to decline over the next six months compared to 50% of NDP voters.
British Columbians have subdued expectations about career mobility and advancement: only 24% expect a raise in the next six months, 18% believe they will move to another house, 17% expect to change careers and just 12% expect to get a promotion at work.
The Insights West online poll was conducted from January 13 to 15 among 811 British Columbia residents. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points.
@jenstden
