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Mid-State Consumer Confidence Sees a Sharp Drop

mtsu.edu

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. (WMOT)  -- After several quarters of rising confidence, mid-state consumers are expressing growing concern about the economy.

The December Consumer Outlook Indexcompiled by Middle Tennessee State University shows a 77 point drop from the September reading of 199.

Survey Director Tim Graeff says mid-state consumers are responding to a growing list of economic concerns.

“There’s grid-lock in Congress they’re worried about. There’s still concern about the job market, about the slow economic recovery, just the overall stability of the United States economy. We’re worried about what’s going to happen in January with the debt ceiling…frustrations with the new health care law.”

Graeff says the survey shows consumers roughly divided between those who plan to spend more and those who plan to spend less during the holidays. The news couldn’t come at a worse time for mid-state retailers who are in the midst of the most important shopping season of the year.

The poll was conducted the first week of December and surveyed 302 randomly chosen consumers in Williamson, Davidson and Rutherford counties.