New Zealanders are increasingly confident that the country has survived the worst impact of the global economic downturn, according to a new UMR Research survey.

The telephone survey, carried out late last month, found that while 72% of respondents were concerned about the impact of the global recession on the New Zealand economy in June, that figure had now fallen to 61%.

This is the lowest level of concern since October last year, according to UMR executive director Tim Grafton.

It is also a long way from the April result, which found that 86% of respondents thought the global recession’s impact on New Zealand would get worse.

Concern over the impact of the crisis on people’s standard of living had also fallen to the lowest level in 10 months, dropping from 54% in June to 48%.

The survey also found that one-third (36%) of New Zealanders think the worst of the recession is over.

“Although these are optimistic signs that confidence is slowly returning, half of us (51%) disagree that the worst is over,” said Mr Grafton.

“The situation is still fragile and signs of recovery should be treated cautiously.”

Unsurprisingly, about half the adult population has cut back spending on consumer goods, clothes and fashion, eating out, entertainment and holidays as a result of the economic scene.

UMR’s fortnightly telephone poll randomly sampled 750 New Zealanders aged 18 years and over and has a margin of error of +3.6%.