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Ron Chalmers, The Edmonton Journal
: p# L5 R$ p8 `! X! M- Y/ zPublished: 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.0 @% Z1 E# s+ R- A8 q/ b
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Leger Marketing surveyed 900 Alberta consumers for PricewaterhouseCoopers, in February, asking about the economy.% R! L; a8 T% Q" Y5 I) E
; q- \" _- x' b- {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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) B: \7 q4 J U. G! KIs this a good time to buy a house in Alberta?
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No, not according to the sample's composite score of 71, showing significant doubt.
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# E4 n: ] [& ] [) ~6 K# _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."
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) u6 b. j1 d5 y, {, S' Z& iWhen asked specifically about interest rates, the sample scored 66, with a widely-shared belief that rates will rise.: G- z/ O0 _, G2 S1 q
( q: h, l0 j- L3 p( fA question about household incomes drew a score of 141, as most people expected incomes to rise.
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The 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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$ N4 v- O6 U$ ~. B+ o' u, ]# I( W. K* UThe prospect for future unemployment was highly optimistic at 127 -- although it's hard to imagine how unemployment could fall any lower.
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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.
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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."7 z Y9 r; {8 ?" Q
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The business sample, like the consumer sample, expected interest rates to rise.
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Barry James, PricewaterhouseCoopers' managing partner in Edmonton, urged borrowers to consider the risk of higher rates.; n( Y2 B0 w& ~ g9 k9 _
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"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~~~
