Consumer Reports: November Economic Outlook - Valley News Live - KVLY/KXJB - Fargo/Grand Forks

On the eve of the election, and despite a high unemployment rate, Consumer Reports finds that many in the country find the economic situation is looking up.

Every month, Consumer Reports asks a cross section of Americans about specific financial troubles (like missing a loan payment) that they've faced in the past 30 days, and the responses are tallied in the  Consumer Reports Index Trouble Tracker.

Good news. In November, the Trouble Tracker fell to its lowest level -- lower than it's been since Consumer Reports began tracking it in early 2009 -- with fewer people than ever reporting problems in the eight key areas, including (1) losing health care coverage, (2) being denied a personal loan, or (3) seeing their credit card rates or fees increase.

People earning $50,000 or more saw the biggest improvement, but even for lower-income Americans, things are getting a little better.

And there's more good news: the Consumer Reports' Employment Index reached a high point this month. It's above 50, meaning that more Americans are finding jobs than losing them. 

Still, the number of people starting jobs remains relatively low... and that will need to increase if the gains we saw this month are to continue.

Besides measuring employment and financial troubles, the Consumer Reports Index also asks how people feel about their financial situation, and that, too, is on the upswing. The majority of those surveyed said that their financial situation was better than it was a year ago.