Majority of U.S. Adults Say Wall Street Benefits the Country

Almost three-quarters (73%) of U.S. adults say that Wall Street and what it does benefits the country (22 percent say it benefits the country "a lot", half (51%) say "somewhat"). This compares to less than one-quarter (23%) who say it harms the country (17% say "somewhat", 6% say "a lot").

This overall perception of Wall Street is slightly better than it was three years ago, when 68 percent said it benefited the country and only 16 percent said Wall Street harmed the country.

Yet, it is still down from the all-time high in 1997 when 80 percent of adults said Wall Street benefited the country.

Source: Harris Poll Weekly