Americans feeling fiscally fit, survey says

Despite careening markets and a drooping housing market, Americans felt more confident about their financial security. The COUNTRY Financial Security Index rose 1.3 points this month to a reading of 69.9, The index, which is a bi-monthly measure of Americans' sentiments toward their overall financial security, marks the second-highest reading of the year, just short of the 70.2 mark recorded in February. The index records the perceived financial security of respondents on a scale of zero to 100 with a reading of 100 indicating the highest level of security. According to the survey that coincided with the index, 51% of Americans rated their personal level of financial security favorably, up three percentage points compared to the August reading. Futhermore, 17% of Americans rated their financial security as "excellent." "The increase reflects that Americans have survived all of the concerns this summer and that the subprime-mortgage crisis seems to be settling down," said Doyle Williams, chief marketing officer. The Index, which was created by COUNTRY Insurance & Financial Services of Bloomington, Ill. this year, was compiled by Rasmussen Reports LLC, an independent research firm, and is based on a national telephone survey of at least 3,000 Americans.