The Consumer Squeeze

Survey shows how shoppers are cutting back their spending

By Paul Carton

In July, a ChangeWave survey pointed to yet another downtick in U.S. consumer spending, despite the injection of $150 billion in tax rebates that were meant to stimulate the economy.

We uncovered the top two reasons why consumers are spending less -- and these factors have gained strength since January in terms of their overall negative impact on the sector. We also discovered clever ways consumers are stretching their dollars.

Read on to learn our results.

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Hot Tickets From the Alliance

Each week Alliance members submit "Hot Tickets" as a way of presenting new observations and ideas on investable opportunities to ChangeWave. Today we're focusing on alternative energy technologies that Alliance members working in the industry think will catch on.

We asked:

Can you identify a specific alternative energy product or technology that you think will experience an increased rate of adoption during the next 12 months?

1. Solar

BIR98498 wrote: "Solar heating is a direct way of bringing heat into the house from the roof or from the earth."

SWR29394 said: "A fourth-generation solar cell, which is a hybrid organic/inorganic cell, will start to make inroads."

2. Wind

ULL93225 wrote: "Wind power is making the largest surge in my state, with record installations of wind farms contracted during the next 12 months. It's important to note that residents are welcoming the farms."

MFE93511 reported: "Although there are many drawbacks to wind as an alternative energy source (especially with the recent press given to the Picken's Plan), we will see increased calls for work in this area. This will just be the next alternative energy sector to get picked up by the government, environmentalists and the media."

3. Hybrid/Electric Vehicles

JAI93010 said: "I believe that flywheel inertia-based hybrid systems will come to the forefront in the near future as a viable alternative to increasing hybrid vehicle range and fuel efficiency. Flybrid Systems, a British company, has developed a Formula One flywheel inertia system that could eventually be ported to consumer vehicles."

4. Biofuel

MOS04937 wrote: "Algae-based fuel grows 25-40 times faster than other bio alternatives (e.g., corn), and it's easier to turn into oil. Plus, it can provide a beneficial and symbiotic use of carbon dioxide emissions from power plants and requires relatively small land area to produce."

5. Nuclear

SAN04512 said: "Nuclear energy should be one of the main solutions to the fossil fuel problem. It's cheap, abundant and the uranium is produced in friendly countries (Australia, Canada, etc.). Now it must gain positive public opinion (regarding safety) in order to fully develop."

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