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There were other notable signs of financial distress.<\/p>\n
More people indicated they were struggling to make ends meet \u2014 41 per cent in January up from 38 per cent the month before. Further, one-third of survey participants said they were relying on government benefits \u201cto keep their head above water,\u201d an increase of four percentage points from the previous survey.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople are relating back to where they were when interest rates were low and they had savings in the bank,\u201d said John Wright, executive vice-president of Maru Public Opinion. \u201cThat\u2019s all gone away.\u201d<\/p>\n
Now, interest rates are at a two-decade-plus high of five per cent. Canadians are taking on more debt, Wright said, citing data from credit score agency Equifax, which found that overall consumer debt totalled $2.4 trillion in the third quarter of 2023, an $80.9-billion increase from the same time last year.<\/p>\n
That has left consumers in a \u201cmostly pessimistic\u201d mood, a frame of mind reflected in the Maru Household Outlook Index.<\/p>\n
\nThis month’s index is like an elevator stalled and hanging by a thread over a deep, dark shaft<\/p>\n
John Wright<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
For January, the index registered 86 with anything below 100 reflecting negative sentiment and anything above indicating optimism. The Household Outlook Index has been stuck in the doldrums since December 2021 and is just slightly off its most pessimistic reading of 83, recorded in March 2023.<\/p>\n<\/section>\n