July 27 (UPI) — Economic confidence in the United States has rebounded from a recent low set in May, but overall Americans remain pessimistic, a Gallup poll released Monday indicates.

Gallup’s Economic Confidence Index increased to -31 for July after falling to -45 in May. It is a seven-point improvement over the -38 ECI in June.

To date, the highest the ECI score has gone is +56 in January 2000, while the lowest mark was set in October 2008 at -72.

Rising energy prices due to the Iran war is one of the major sticking points that has the view of the U.S. economy in the negatives. The number of people that rated the U.S. economy “poor” has risen from 33% of respondents to 44% since February 2025.

High costs of living and inflation remain other key factors in the overall pessimism toward the U.S. economy, along with government, Congress and politicians.

Yet those surveyed say there has been improvement in their outlook since May. The percentage of people who said economic conditions were improving fell from 33% to 20% between February and May. That percentage has grown back up to 28% in July.

The percentage of people who believe the economy is getting worse remains more than twice that of those who believe it is getting better. In January 2025, about 57% of respondents said the economy is getting worse. In July, 67% said the same.

The greatest improvement in the U.S. viewpoint of the economy was marked among Republicans and independents.

Democrats had a more optimistic view of the U.S. economy in January 2025, compared to Republicans and independents, with an ECI score of +7. The ECI for Democrats plummeted to -76 in July, while the index for Republicans rose from -42 in January 2025 to +41 in July.

The index for independents in that same time decreased from -20 to -38. July’s index is an improvement over the -58 ECI in May.