"Overall, the confidence numbers do seem to be heading up. Looking back over the recent past, it now seems as though Canadians were downshifting into the corner but are now keen to accelerate into the straightaway. But it won't be full-throttle all the way - their hesitancy remains when it comes to pulling the trigger on those major purchases," said Dr. Michael Antecol, vice-president of TNS Canadian Facts and director of the marketing research firm's monthly tracking study.

The Present Situation Index, which captures evaluations of the overall state of the current economic and employment situations, rose to 93.3, a strong 4.4-point jump since March's 88.9 and a more than 10-point increase since January's 82.7. Likewise, the Expectations Index, which measures consumers' estimation of the economy, household income and employment in the next six months, remains strong. While the index gave back most of last month's gains, falling 2.2 points from March's historic high of 111.9, it still closed at a healthy 109.7. In contrast, the Buy Index, which gauges the degree to which people think the current period is a good time to make major purchases, continues its recent trend of bouncing around. After rising in February, it fell one point in March and almost one point in April. It now stands at 100.9.

"With overall confidence over that super-important 100-point mark for the first time in two years and with Canadians feeling good about today and tomorrow, the last tumbler to fall into place is for Canadians to feel more strongly about now being the time to make those big buys. When they do, we may finally see the economic recovery unlocked," added Dr. Antecol.