Consumer confidence increased in September, rising 1.7 percent to 103.0 points according to The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index.
The Present Situation Index – a measure of respondents’ appraisal of current business and employment conditions, grew 5.3 points to 121.1, an eight year high, while the Expectations Index – a measure of business employment and total family income expectations in the next six months, fell 0.6 points to 91.0.
“Consumer confidence increased moderately in September, following August’s sharp rebound,” noted Lynn Franco, Director of Economic Indicators at The Conference Board. “Consumers’ expectations for the short-term outlook, however, remained relatively flat, although there was a modest improvement in income expectations. [Consumers] do not foresee growth accelerating in the months ahead.”
Outlook for the labor market was mixed in September, as respondents anticipating more jobs in the months ahead was largely unchanged at 15 percent, while those anticipating fewer jobs increased from 14.5 percent to 15.8 percent. Income expectations increased however, as 19.1 percent expected incomes to increase, up from 16.2 percent in August.
The outlook for business conditions improved in September, with the number of respondents saying business conditions are “good” increased from 23.7 percent to 28.0 percent, while the number saying conditions were “bad” fell 1.1 percent to 16.7 percent.
Read the release.
