OPTIMISM over quality of life and economic conditions in the next 12 months hit the highest level, so far, this year in the third quarter, the latest survey of the Social Weather Stations (SWS) showed.
The survey was conducted Sept. 4-7 through face-to-face interviews with 1,200 adults nationwide.
That was before the government reported two weeks ago that inflation picked up to 5.3% in October from 4.6% the previous month and, just last Monday, gross domestic product (GDP) growth slid to 3.2% in the third quarter from 7.3% the previous year, falling short of economic planners’ 3.8-4.8% estimate for that period and pushing government’s 4.5-5.5% full-year outlook further out of reach.
But a Palace official said he did not expect especially the report of muted growth to erode such optimism, noting the slowdown was more a result of weakened demand in export markets and storm damage.
The third quarter survey showed those among respondents who expected their quality of life to improve (“optimists”) in the next 12 months rising to 39% in the September survey from 36% and 35% in June and March, respectively.
Those who expected it to worsen (“pessimists”) remained at October’s 9% level, which in turn was a decline from 11% in the March survey.
That yielded a “very high” net personal optimism score (difference between optimists and pessimists) of +30, compared to the “high” levels of +27 and +24 in the June and March surveys, respectively.
Still, that net optimism score in September was lower than the +35 and +32 recorded in November and September, respectively, last year.
Similarly, net optimism over the economy’s prospects in the next 12 months rose further into the “very high” territory at +22 in the September survey from +14 in June and from a mere “high” +4 last March.
Those who expected the economy to worsen dropped to 14% in September from 16% and 24% in June and March, respectively, while those who believed it would improve grew to 35% from 29% and 27% in the same surveys.
However, the third-quarter net economic optimism score was less than the +30 and +29 recorded in November and September last year.
Life improved
Finally, those who said quality of life improved (“gainers”) over the past 12 months hit 26%, the highest since the quarterly survey under the current administration started in September last year.
Those who said their lives worsened (“losers”) slid to 32% in September, the lowest this year, though still higher than the levels seen in the September and November 2010 surveys.
Consequently, September saw a net gainers-losers score of -6 — an improvement over the -11 and -13 recorded in June and March, respectively — but it was still worse than the -5 and -2 recorded in November and September, respectively, last year.
In terms of geographic representation, the third quarter saw only the Visayas worsening in both net personal and net economic optimism.
The Visayas and Metro Manila also saw their net scores in terms of whether life improved or worsened falling further into negative territory in the third quarter.
None of the socioeconomic classes represented showed lower scores in terms of net personal and economic optimism, as well as change in quality of life over the past 12 months, and improvements were recorded in some cases.
Asked if he expected optimism to erode in the wake of recent government reports on the economy, Secretary Herminio B. Coloma, Jr., head of the Presidential Communications and Operations Office, particularly noted that the slower-than-expected third-quarter GDP growth “was brought on by weaker demand from export markets and typhoon damage, and not primarily by domestic developments.”
Admitting that “optimism will remain but may decline”, Mr. Coloma said via text on Tuesday that impact of “accelerated government spending and continuing high… satisfaction with President (Benigno S. C.) Aquino’s (III) leadership will sustain people’s optimism.”
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By: JPDP
Source: Business World, Nov. 30, 2011
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