(NewsNation) — Concerns over inflation and financial volatility have led more Americans to worry that they won’t be able to retire, a long-running survey found.

According to results of the 33rd annual Retirement Confidence Survey, 64% of workers feel at least somewhat confident they can live comfortably throughout retirement, while 18% feel very confident. This is a significant drop compared to 2022, when 73% reported feeling confident.

Meanwhile, 73% of retirees said they are at least somewhat or very optimistic about living comfortably in retirement. Last year, that number was 77%.

For those who do not feel that they will be able to begin retirement, or stay that way, four in 10 current workers and a quarter of retirees stated that it is because they have “little to no” savings. Inflation also plays a part — 29% of those employed and 42% of retirees said it has given them doubts about their financial stability.

A decline in Retirement Confidence of this magnitude hasn’t been seen since the 2008 global financial crisis, according to the Retirement Confidence Survey.

And those polled don’t think these issues are going away any time soon — roughly eight in 10 reported that they have concerns that inflation will be high for at least the next 12 months, and many said that will make it harder for them to save. .

Recession fears are also looming — three-quarters of Americans fear the US economy will go into one over the next year.

Conducted by the Employee Benefit Research Institute and Greenwald Research, the RCS is the longest-running survey of its kind. From Jan. 5 through Feb. 2, 2,537 Americans ages 25 or older were surveyed. Of those, 1,320 were workers and 1,217 were retirees.

Craig Copeland, director of wealth-benefits research at EBRI, told the Wall Street Journal that it is common for retirees to express greater confidence than workers about their financial prospects, as the further away a person is from retirement, the greater the uncertainty.

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