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June 13, 2017 at 12:50 PM
For the first time in over a year, the Wells Fargo/Gallup Investor and Retirement Optimism index did not improve. Instead it fell slightly from +126 in February, a 16-year high, to +124, its baseline score when it was established in October 1996.
Investors are slightly less optimistic primarily because of political developments here and abroad. Seventy-five percent were very or somewhat worried about military and diplomatic conflicts around the world while 69% were concerned about domestic politics. Just under 50% were concerned that the economy would threaten their investments.
“Given recent headlines, it’s not surprising that investors are more concerned that geopolitical risks pose a greater threat to their investments than the economy,” said Brian Rehling, co-head of fixed income strategy at Wells Fargo Investment Institute, in a statement. He told ThinkAdvisor that investors were “jazzed up” with the new Trump administration at the beginning but now seem to be “scaling back” that optimism.
(Related: Investor Optimism Climbs to 16-Year High: Wells Fargo/Gallup)
The survey is based on telephone interviews with just over 1,000 investors, age 18 and older, who are randomly selected, with close to 60% reporting incomes of $90,000 or more and the rest reporting lower incomes.
