The Consumer Confidence Index was 92.9 in March, down 7.2 points from the previous month, the Conference Board said. The present situation index — based on consumers’ assessment of current business and labor market conditions — fell 3.6 points to 134.5. The expectations index — based on consumers’ short-term outlook for income, business and labor market conditions — dropped 9.6 points to 65.2.
“Views of current business conditions weakened to close to neutral,” said Stephanie Guichard, senior economist, global indicators, at the Conference Board. “Consumers’ expectations were especially gloomy, with pessimism about future business conditions deepening and confidence about future employment prospects falling to a 12-year low. Meanwhile, consumers’ optimism about future income — which had held up quite strongly in the past few months — largely vanished, suggesting worries about the economy and labor market have started to spread into consumers’ assessments of their personal situations.”
