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Ron Chalmers, The Edmonton Journal
" P/ w9 M$ V9 P6 _- vPublished: Tuesday, April 03, 2007; Z, I6 J! L0 z1 Q, ~9 l
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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.0 s( r0 V& V( N+ l% \8 M4 u
$ y& ^* D1 _3 A, Z/ B KLeger Marketing surveyed 900 Alberta consumers for PricewaterhouseCoopers, in February, asking about the economy.6 O7 h5 B2 |1 L1 k$ X8 [% Z
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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.
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! p" `9 ] p: PIs this a good time to buy a house in Alberta?
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. R! p! x1 x7 W4 ]+ k8 qNo, not according to the sample's composite score of 71, showing significant doubt.+ A; d5 }) |8 Z. {
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Leger'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."( f% [ }4 C; N D( O# t, ]: a4 F
3 N6 _% N/ I0 T; m' M& }! ~When asked specifically about interest rates, the sample scored 66, with a widely-shared belief that rates will rise.
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: [# [5 ?1 `9 g+ O2 H% R v( @- z4 dA question about household incomes drew a score of 141, as most people expected incomes to rise.
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- B! ]5 V R3 qThe 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.
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The prospect for future unemployment was highly optimistic at 127 -- although it's hard to imagine how unemployment could fall any lower.0 l( \* @1 ?2 z: V6 \" v7 R* r
5 ]1 S | ?/ l3 P! q/ }& q. mA 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.
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Among 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."9 `2 k) [1 p8 B
9 U# _1 c8 J6 O/ L4 m1 m0 nThe business sample, like the consumer sample, expected interest rates to rise.9 j' |% N9 _6 Y9 E2 m# i
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Barry James, PricewaterhouseCoopers' managing partner in Edmonton, urged borrowers to consider the risk of higher rates.7 j2 ]& N- y( m2 b- u" G8 \
+ a. k `' n$ E"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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狗仔卡
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~~~
