Consumers' State of Mind: Overcast With Breaks of Sun Later in the Year

COLUMBUS, OH--(Marketwire - June 19, 2007) - When it comes to today's consumer, it's difficult to figure out which way is up. It gets even more perplexing when the voices of consumer experts, Wall Street analysts and media talking heads chime in. Some say incomes are up, job growth steady, and that people have more net worth to invest than ever. Consumers should feel fine and be at the malls and restaurants spending up a storm. Others point out that the housing market is in a free fall with home values dropping, the personal savings rate at a 60 year low and negative, while household debt levels are at record levels. In this scenario consumers need to hunker down and wait out the impending economic storm. So what's a person to think? Many consumers are feeling confused and wonder why they feel bad when the experts say they should feel good.

Away from the land of econometrics and modeling lies a different world -- Main Street USA, where over 70% of the economic activity takes place by its inhabitants who are known as consumers... real consumers who live their daily lives without benefit of historical econometric models or knowing what the price of a barrel of oil is. On Main Street USA, consumers worry about today's price for a gallon of gas, how high it will be tomorrow or what impact it will have on their budgets. They are concerned about their grocery bills, which keep going up, and they want to find the retailer that has the best quality at the lowest prices for Junior's new school outfit.

BIGresearch's June Consumer Intentions & Actions Survey (CIA) explores the complex and ever-changing world of you and me, otherwise collectively known as the consumer. Areas covered include how consumers are feeling about the economy, high gas prices, their savings and future spending plans. What follows is the collective wisdom of over 7,500 consumers, who participated in BIGresearch's June CIA Survey. But be forewarned, we have not included the voice of the experts in these findings since they represent far less than the 70% of economic activity generated by the consumer market in Main Street USA. What follows is what consumers say about their own situations, which BIGresearch believes they know best.

--  Women are least confident in the economy over the next 6 months
    followed by consumers with incomes below $50,000.  Men are most confident.
--  Shopping trips are being impacted by higher gas prices as 41.9% of
    consumers say they are taking fewer trips and 40.1% are shopping closer to
    home.
--  Overall 72.9% of the people think gas prices will be higher by July
    4th. 77.8% of consumers who have a student loan think gas prices will
    increase over this time frame and the average price will be $3.39 a gallon.
--  39.9% of the respondents believe the stock market accurately reflects
    the strength of the economy and 60.9% said it doesn't.
--  32.3% of all women respondents plan on decreasing spending over the
    next 3 months and 32.9% of consumers with incomes over $50,000 said same.
--  Future purchase intentions for durables such as computers, furniture,
    appliances, home improvements, TVs, digital cameras, and housing all are up
    from the previous month (May) indicating consumers may have some pent up
    spending to do in the 3rd and 4th quarter of the year.
    

http://www.bigresearch.com/bigciajune07.pdf

Additional information on CIA and other BIGresearch samples may be accessed by going to: http://www.bigresearch.com and clicking on Complimentary Top Line Findings.

About BIGresearch

BIGresearch is a market intelligence firm providing analysis of consumer behavior in areas of retail, financial services, automotive, and media. They conduct the Consumer Intentions & Actions (CIA) Survey which monitors the pulse of more than 7,000 consumers each month. The CIA delivers current, demand-based information on where the retail consumer is shopping and their changing behavior. The data provides intelligence on where the retail consumer is going, their intentions and actions.

BIGresearch's methodology provides the most accurate consumer information in the industry with a margin of error of +/- 1 percent.

Contact Information: Contact: Phil Rist BIGresearch 450 West Wilson Bridge Road Suite 370 Worthington, Ohio 43085 (614) 846-0146