(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Three-in-four people in the United States acknowledge that their country’s economy is facing major challenges, according to a poll by Opinion Research Corporation released by CNN. 75 per cent of respondents rate the economic conditions in the country as poor, up 16 points since January.

George W. Bush—a Republican—earned a second four-year term in the November 2004 presidential election. The next presidential election will take place on Nov. 4.

Since last year, defaults on so-called subprime mortgages—credit given to high-risk borrowers—have caused volatility in domestic and financial markets and raised concerns that the U.S. economy could fall into a recession.

Earlier this month, Joshua Shapiro, chief economist at New York’s Maria Fiorini Ramirez Inc., said that production of manufactured goods in the U.S. is yet to be hit by greater economic challenges, adding, "An increasingly strained consumer, deepening woes for the housing sector and a desire to pare inventories will all weigh on manufacturing output."

Polling Data

How would you rate the economic conditions in the country today—as very good, somewhat good, somewhat poor, or very poor?

Source: Opinion Research Corporation / CNN
Methodology: Interviews with 497 American adults, conducted on Aug. 23, to Aug. 24, 2008. Margin of error is 4.5 per cent.

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