UK consumers are expecting a major financial crisis and housing crash this year, according to a survey.
Wealth manager Spearvest conducted a survey of 1,000 members of the UK public about their views on the economic outlook for 2019.
Around 44% said they expect a financial crisis worse than 2008, with a similar number (41%) saying they expect to see a housing crash happen this year.
Wael Al-Nahedh, chief executive of Spearvest, said: “With widespread concern around the performance of the housing market and the wider economy, 2019 already looks set to be a challenging year for investors.”
Trust
The survey also found that only 14% of the population said they had forgiven the banks after the 2008 financial crash.
It also found that over half (55%) did not believe banks had consumers’ best interests at heart, with only 13% believing they did.
Al-Nahedh added: “It’s also clear that the financial services industry needs to do much more to win back trust of the public, supporting good causes and demonstrating a genuine commitment to charitable giving.”
Expectations
Despite this survey, banks and the financial sector have dramatically changed since 2008 with regulatory and cultural reforms across the world, therefore it is unlikely that a worse crash would happen.
But, never say never. Amid the usual deluge of 2019 predictions International Adviser received in December and earlier this month were a number of concerns about the state of the global economy and the likelihood of another crisis.
Outlooks were mixed and remain so.
During a recent breakfast briefing attended by IA, JP Morgan Asset Management said that the economy is not entering a period of earnings collapse like previous recession because the world is better capitalised.
However, at M&G’s 2019 Global Market Briefing, also attended by IA, head of retail fixed interest, Jim Leaviss, said that there are similar signs today which were seen prior to the 2008 crash.
