You know things are bad when even millionaires are worried about the economy.
Millionaire confidence fell to a nine-month low in July, according to the latest Millionaire Investor Confidence Index, a poll conducted by the consulting firm Spectrem Group. It seems money doesn't necessarily guarantee peace of mind -- something we've seen evidence of before.
Debt-crisis tremors in Europe, ballooning government debt in the U.S. and a domestic economy that seems to be going nowhere fast are all reasons why the wealthy might be biting their nails, according to Robert Frank of CNBC.
Frank points out that the top 5 percent of earners account for something like one-third of all consumer spending in the U.S. -- which means if they're feeling nervous about money, it doesn't bode well for the economy as a whole.
Millionaires aren't the only ones feeling risk-averse. Ever since the global economic slowdown took hold, companies have been more likely to go into high-alert mode at the first sign of trouble, according to Bloomberg.
It doesn't appear to matter that corporate profits are higher than they've ever been -- many companies are sitting on their money instead of using it for spending or investment, and many employers say they're holding back on hiring because they're concerned about the future.
Meanwhile, America's non-millionaires are also worried about the economy and salting away money, but considering so many of them are unemployed, impoverished or teetering on the edge of financial catastrophe, you can see how this sort of makes sense.