Americans' confidence in their future personal financial situation is weakening, but attitudes about current economic conditions and investments - though low - have stabilized, according to a monthly national survey by Ipsos Public Affairs, writes MarketingCharts. In April, the six-year-old RBC CASH (Consumer Attitudes and Spending by Household) Index dropped to an all-time low of 29.5, down from 33.1 in March. One year ago, in April, the Index was at 85.4.

The downturn "indicates a potential retrenchment by consumers and corroborates suspicions that the economy has slipped into a recession," said T. J. Marta, economic and fixed income strategist for RBC Capital Markets.

The RBC CASH Index is composed of four sub-indices:

RBC Expectations Index

Having already plummeted 34 points in March to -41.6, the sub-index fell nearly another seven points to -48.3, a downturn that shows the overall pessimism consumers have regarding a quick economic recovery.

One in five consumers (22 percent) say their personal finances will be weaker six months from now (15 percent said so in February).

RBC Current Conditions Index

The sub-index held steady at 54.6, compared with 54.7 in March.

Americans' negative views of the current state of their local economy dramatically outweighed positive views:

• Four in ten consumers (41 percent) rated their local economy as "weak," and just 15 percent rated it "strong."
• One in four (25 percent) of those surveyed rated personal finances as "strong," and 31 percent rated them as "weak" - both figures relatively unchanged from March.

RBC Investment Index

The sub-index hit the lowest level (56.4) since the CASH Index was created in 2002.

The next 30 days is a bad time to invest in the stock market (said 67 percent of respondents, compared with 65 percent in March) and in real estate (said 60 percent, compared with 62 percent last month).

RBC Jobs Index

The sub-index reached its lowest level in four years: 97.0 in April, down from 99.2, as more Americans (40 percent vs. 36 percent in March) reported job loss in their immediate circle.

About the RBC CASH Index: Ipsos Public Affairs polled a representative nationwide sample of 1,005 US adults from April 7-9, 2008. The Index is benchmarked to a baseline of 100 assigned at its introduction in Jan' 02.