If you need a compass on how one important regional economy in our state is  faring, look no further than the greater Fort Smith area.

Our content partner, The City Wire, distributed its quarterly economic report, which shows flatline growth in a variety of indicators such as employment, construction and consumer spending.

There is a new tool in The City Wire’s arsenal to provide another layer of analysis on local economic conditions.  Through a partnership with Talk Business and Hendrix College, The City Wire unveils The Consumer Compass, a survey of local residents on the current and future state of the economy.

Here are a few highlights from the regional survey of 475 residents:

It would appear that Fort Smith area residents are profoundly pessimistic about their personal financial prospects today and looking toward the future. Only 11.5% describe their personal finances as better today than one year ago, while nearly four times as many respondents say their situation has worsened in the last 12 months. The attitudes do not strengthen significantly when looking forward. By a more than 2-to-1 margin citizens see their personal financial situation worsening during the next year (35-14%).

• Local business conditions are a concern for residents. Three times as many residents see conditions worsening locally versus those who see an improvement in the near-term (40-15%). But their views of the U.S. economy — which may be dampening their local views — are even more pessimistic. More than 58% see the U.S. economy worsening during the next year, while only 15% see a better national forecast. The number of people in the Fort Smith region who see the economy remaining the same falls by 50% when comparing local economic conditions to the U.S. as a whole.

• There are hints of optimism about the business environment in the region. While only a small number (12%) say local policies for job growth are good, when combined with those who feel it is "okay, but could be better" the number leaps to 58%. Less than one-third of residents feel local actions and policies related to business and job growth are bad (28%).

Click here to access the full report.