Serbian citizens are most optimistic in region

BELGRADE - Forty percent of Serbian citizens expect the economic situation to improve, while in Croatia that percentage is 11, in Montenegro 26 and in Macedonia 37, according to a survey by Ipsos Strategic Marketing.

The survey states that 33 percent of Serbian people expect their personal financial situation to improve, the daily Politika has reported.

However, although they are the most optimistic in the region, the Serbian people are also fairly pessimistic, with 41 percent of those surveyed stating that they do not expect the economic situation in the country to improve, but to actually deteriorate.

Every third household in Western Europe has felt the effects of the economic crisis. In countries undergoing transition, every second household has been affected. Three quarters of households in Serbia has had its members lose their job or their income drop.

The phone survey was ordered by the European Commission, conducted in September and included a sample of 1,000 people.

Photo Tanjug, D. Peternek (illustration)