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Ron Chalmers, The Edmonton Journal1 l r3 `/ l$ H
Published: Tuesday, April 03, 2007
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EDMONTON - Most Albertans think this is a bad time to buy a house -- but a good time to buy major household items.
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% L. z) O* z- s$ Z4 KLeger Marketing surveyed 900 Alberta consumers for PricewaterhouseCoopers, in February, asking about the economy.
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Responses were compiled on a 200-point scale, with scores above 100 indicating optimism that conditions are good or will improve, and lower scores revealing pessimism that conditions are bad or will worsen.9 J* |: j' S9 ^) N; p
: V' x, l* ~* g9 L+ m, [Is this a good time to buy a house in Alberta?2 U; c( e+ H. F4 s. A
" c7 Y( i/ |2 o& TNo, not according to the sample's composite score of 71, showing significant doubt.
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3 t! g% L3 A" j9 t5 ELeger's report noted "the relatively pessimistic sentiment regarding interest rates, combined with the fact that the housing market in Alberta has boomed over the last two years."+ u) G& i. G7 C1 u
) L- U" K, V9 E5 U( b% N% [When asked specifically about interest rates, the sample scored 66, with a widely-shared belief that rates will rise.
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" B6 F4 l) n* `. y* T5 B5 Q0 BA question about household incomes drew a score of 141, as most people expected incomes to rise.
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. U ?- C; m: w; B5 ?3 Z$ WThe sample scored 161 -- overwhelmingly affirmative -- when asked whether this is a good time to buy major household items "reflecting the fact that many Albertans are experiencing unprecedented levels of disposable income," the report said." [! @0 _; Z5 G; _: z
* ^4 b. |& ]9 l! b& e, rThe prospect for future unemployment was highly optimistic at 127 -- although it's hard to imagine how unemployment could fall any lower.7 m) d8 M! R5 p8 R
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A related online survey of 420 Alberta business leaders similarly found optimism about fiscal conditions, current and future business conditions, and future unemployment -- all pushed by "the hot Alberta economy," the Leger report said.. n4 k. C8 ^7 [& [+ D6 H
9 J1 k7 h) c9 X4 xAmong those several measures, it found that fiscal expectations were the least positive, "which may be attributed in part to the fact that Alberta has a new premier in place, creating uncertainty in relation to fiscal conditions if compared to the previous Klein administration."
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& F6 W* i- w; OThe business sample, like the consumer sample, expected interest rates to rise.3 V1 T* e1 a1 J! O7 M, N, s
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Barry James, PricewaterhouseCoopers' managing partner in Edmonton, urged borrowers to consider the risk of higher rates.
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4 S, ^7 c. C% B3 J1 o4 m8 u) V"If you're going to make a large spend, ask yourself what one or two or three more points would cost," he suggested. |
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发表于 2007-4-3 06:55
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发表于 2007-4-4 14:25
晕啊~~我看晕了~~~
