Ipsos CASH Index Stable For First Time Since Mid-2002

Interviews for the latest polling were conducted between July 8 to 10 and July 22 to 24, 2003. The margin of error for the questions on each rolling average of two consecutive surveys totaling 2000 adults is 177 2.2%, nineteen times out of twenty. Washington, D.C. -- The Ipsos National CASH Index (measuring Consumer Attitudes and Spending by Household) held steady at the end of July, continuing a 2-month stabilizing trend.

View Larger Version The Ipsos CASH Index declined steadily through the second half of 2002 and early 2003, dropping from a baseline of 100 to a low of 61.4 in early March, 2003. A wartime boost in March and April saw the index regain almost all the losses of the previous fifteen months, rising back to 88.8 in late April. After the high in April, the Ipsos CASH index has now stabilized close to 80 points, and has held this position since late May.

Compared to the period of stability from January to May, 2002, current consumer concerns focus more heavily on the state of the local economy and local economic expectations. The previous period of stability saw the status of current personal finances and personal financial expectations as the primary concerns.

The following chart depicts the net change in the most recent monthly CASH Index rating since January 2002 based on each of the factors used to generate the Index.

Ipsos CASH Index (Ipsos Consumer Attitudes and Spending by Household Index) Index Score Changes Since January 2002 - National Monthly -

View Larger Version The National CASH Index is constructed twice monthly throughout the year. In addition, Ipsos constructs regional and demographic CASH Indexes four times per year (at the end of each fiscal quarter), as well as preliminary indices produced at the mid-point of each fiscal quarter). Ipsos CASH Index Surveys of consumers are conducted by Ipsos-Public Affairs, the Washington, D.C.-based division of Ipsos, which is the world's second largest polling and market research organization. The Ipsos Consumer Attitudes and Spending by Household (CASH) Index polls are conducted the first and third week of every month, as part of Ipsos-Public Affairs weekly omnibus polling service. The Ipsos CASH Index, started in January 2002, is a bimonthly national survey of consumer attitudes on the current and future state of the local economy, personal financial situation and spending, saving and confidence to invest.

For more information about the Ipsos CASH Index or to receive this report on the first and third week of every month, please e-mail [email protected], or contact Brian Scanlon at 202.463.2146. For more information on this release, please contact: Thomas Riehle President, Ipsos-Public Affairs Washington, D.C. 202.463.7300