Paying down debt is the top financial priority for Canadians, who are also worried about inflation, rising interest rates and fears of a recession in 2023.

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That's according to CIBC's annual poll, which found inflation to be a concern for 65% of Canadians, rising interest rates for 30% and fears of recession for 24%. .

The poll also showed that 55% of Canadians believe they need to manage their finances better this year, and one in four said they had taken on more debt in the past 12 months.

“The current economic situation has rightly prompted Canadians to reassess their financial priorities for 2023,” said Carissa Lucreziano, Vice President, CIBC Financial and Investment Advisory.

Although 73% of Canadians are worried about the possibility of a recession next year, 62% feel financially prepared for the unexpected and 59% believe that their financial situation is strong enough to withstand a recession.

Other top priorities for 2023 include tracking invoices (17% of respondents) and growing investments (14% of respondents).

Common secondary financial goals for 2023 of Canadians are to save as much as possible (25%), avoid further debt (24%), save for vacations (21%) and reduce expenses discretionary (18%).

This survey was conducted between December 12 and December 19, 2022 among 1,523 Canadian adults randomly selected from online panelists.