Pakistanis rising on global ladder of economic hope: survey

A global poll, released on the eve of the New Year, conveys a hopeful message that economic gloom is subsiding worldwide and that hopes about the economy have risen from -2 percent to 7 percent, a rise of 9 percentage points from a year ago.
According to the findings, Pakistanis are rising on the global ladder of hope. Compared to a year ago, net hope rises by 17 percentage points from last year. Among those interviewed, 32 percent of Pakistanis are hopeful about economy, 27 percent believe it will be difficult while 30 percent believe this year will be the same as last year. However, 12 percent did not give a view.
The gloomy trend in Western Europe appears to have been arrested while North America is slightly less gloomy than it was, says the poll, and adds that there is a notable upsurge of economic hope in China and India.
The global survey was carried out by the world’s largest independent network of opinion pollsters, WIN-Gallup International in 54 countries, among more than 55,817 men and women, covering vast majority of world population. The network has conducted this annual poll for 35 years since 1977.
A key question in the global survey asked was, compared to this year, in your opinion, will next year be a year of economic prosperity, economic difficulty or remain the same?
According to the WIN-Gallup International global barometer of hope and happiness, 35 percent of the world is hopeful about economic prospects in 2013, while 28 percent expect it to be worse than 2012, 29 percent expect no change from previous year while 8 percent were unable to give an answer.
Global economic hope was 2 percent on new year eve in 2010; it declined to -2 percent in 2011 but had risen notably to 7 percent in 2012. The positive change is mainly due to resurgence of hope in India and China. At the same time the gloom in Western Europe has been arrested and slightly declined from -46 percent a year ago to -48 percent at this year end. In North America it has improved from -25 percent to -12 percent