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Faith in banks and financial institutions remains low
Europeans' and Americans' confidence in their financial institutions has followed a similar trajectory throughout the global economic crisis, suggesting a strong link between the two struggling economies.

In most countries, pluralities say it is a bad time to find a job
A median of 12% of EU residents in 2011 said it was a good time to find a job where they live, while a median of 80% said it was a bad time. Residents of Greece were most pessimistic, while Germans were most optimistic.

A median of 36% confident in government; 43% confident in financial institutions
Europeans had little faith in their national governments and financial institutions in 2011 compared with other key institutions, likely reflecting dissatisfaction with the economic turmoil gripping the EU. Europeans trusted their military (69%) and honesty of elections (59%) the most.

Greeks, Spaniards, Italians say their governments make it hard to start and manage businesses
Residents in some of the EU's most debt-laden countries are also among the most likely to say their government makes it hard to start and manage a business. The climate for entrepreneurs is most inhospitable in Greece, where more than 8 in 10 residents see their government as an obstacle.

Chadians among the least likely to say media in their country have a lot of freedom
People worldwide are more likely to perceive the media in their countries as having a lot of freedom than not. A median of 67% say their media have this much freedom, but this view ranges from as low as 27% in Chad to as high as 95% in the Netherlands.

U.S. still top desired destination
Worldwide desire to migrate abated between 2007 and 2010, but Gallup finds 14% of the world's adults -- or about 630 million people -- would still like to migrate to another country if they had the chance.

Majorities in 19 out of 124 countries "thriving," mostly in Europe and the Americas
Gallup's global wellbeing surveys from 2010 reveal that a median of 21% across 124 countries were "thriving" last year, based on how people rated their lives at the current time and in the next five years. The percentage who were thriving ranged from a high of 72% in Denmark to a low of 1% in Chad.

Greeks and Romanians predict their lives will be worse than they are now
In the next five years, people in nearly all EU countries expect their lives to be better than they are now. Greeks and Romanians alone predict their lives will be worse.

Nearly all in Ireland, Greece, Spain, and Slovakia said it was a bad time to find a job
Most EU residents are likely hoping 2011 brings jobs. EU residents almost universally agreed 2010 was a bad time to hunt for work, including more than 9 in 10 in Ireland, Greece, Spain, and Slovakia.

A median of 29% saw their living standards getting better in 2010
While EU residents' optimism about their standard of living in 2010 doesn't indicate a full recovery from the economic crisis, Gallup surveys show their outlooks are improving. Between 2009 and 2010 the percentage who saw their living standards getting better increased or stayed the same in nearly every country.

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