The number of Tokyo residents expecting their economic condition to worsen, based on their household budget, hit a record high of 40.7 percent of those surveyed in an annual government poll.
Only 5.6 percent of those polled said they believe their economic conditions will improve over the next year. About 3,000 adults living in Tokyo were chosen at random for the poll, and 72.2 percent of them responded. The annual poll has been taken since 1980.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government poll was conducted from last Nov. 15 through 30, coinciding with the revelation of a number of bankruptcies and scandals at financial institutions, including Sanyo Securities Co. and Yamaichi Securities Co. The dismal outlook of the financial industry probably influenced those polled into having low expectations, metro officials said.
In the government's 1996 poll, 33.7 percent said they expected their living conditions to worsen over the next year. People who are self-employed lead those who expected poorer living conditions, at 47.5 percent.