The general state of the American consumer? Worried.

Worried about subprime issues, worried about rising gas prices, most definitely worried about losing their jobs and worried about that swinging stock market.

About 27 percent of about 1,000 Americans surveyed in September thought their current financial situation was weak, according to the RBC CASH Index. Only 23 percent had thought so in August.

The monthly national survey tracks consumer attitudes and spending by household. About 30 percent of those surveyed were between 18 and 34 years of age, 26 percent were between 35-49, 27 percent between 50-64 and the rest were older.

More consumers were uneasy making household purchases, and more were squeamish this month about job security — 45 percent said they were less confident about keeping their jobs, up from 40 percent last month.

The doom-and-gloom didn’t stop there.

Only 49 percent of consumers thought it was unlikely that somebody they knew would find themselves without a job in the next six months. Last month, that number was 56 percent.

More thought their local economies were weak, and felt less assured making investments or whopper buys.

“The magnitude in the drop of consumer confidence is not surprising given the rocky economic ride consumers are experiencing,” said T.J. Marta, economic and fixed income strategist for RBC Capital Markets.

But all those funky sentiments had a bright spot to them.

More than one-third of those surveyed thought their financial situation will improve in the next six months, according to the survey.

Smells like optimism.

(Photo source: Reuters)