Consumer Sentiment rose in March to 89.1 according to the University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index. March’s figure is its highest level in a year and was 10.7 points higher than the February reading. However, the index is still 4.7 points below the March 2020 index. The Current Economic Conditions Index climbed 7.9 points from the previous month to 93.0, but the reading is 10.3 points below the March 2020 index. The Consumer Expectations Index increased 12.7 points to 79.7 and is the same reading from a year ago.
“Consumer sentiment continued to rise in late March, reaching its highest level in a year due to the third disbursement of relief checks and better than anticipated vaccination progress. As prospects for obtaining vaccination have grown, so too has people’s impatience with isolation, as those concerns were voiced by nearly one-third of consumers in March, the highest level in the past year. The majority of consumers reported hearing of recent gains in the national economy, mainly net job gains.” said Richard Curtin, chief economist of UM Surveys of Consumers.
Read the University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers release.
