Consumer Sentiment rose in December to 80.7 according to the University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index. December’s figure is 18.7 points below the December 2019 index. The Current Economic Conditions Index rose 3.4 points from the previous month to 90.0, but the reading is 22.1 points below the December 2019 index. The Consumer Expectations Index rose 5.8 points to 74.6 but is 16.1 points lower than a year ago.
“The Sentiment Index slipped in late December, although it remained higher than last month despite the ongoing surge in covid infections and deaths. The improvement was due to a large and rapid partisan shift, with Democrats becoming much more positive and Republicans much more negative(…)The pandemic has had a much greater relative impact on assessments of the overall economy than on assessments of consumers’ current personal financial situations.” said Richard Curtin, chief economist of UM Surveys of Consumers.
Read the University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers release.
