The Consumer Confidence Index was 91.2 in June, up from a downwardly revised 90.6 in May, the Conference Board said. The present situation index — based on consumers’ assessment of current business and labor market conditions — decreased by three points to 116.4. The expectations index — based on consumers’ short-term outlook for income, business and labor market conditions — rose by three points to 74.4.
“Consumer confidence inched up in June as falling oil prices in recent weeks provided some relief to consumer inflation fears,” said Dana Peterson, chief economist for the Conference Board. “Consumer appraisals of current business conditions were slightly more positive compared to last month. However, perceptions of the current labor market softened measurably as the percentage of consumers saying jobs were ‘hard to get’ rose to 22.5%, the highest level since January 2021 (22.8%). Moreover, consumers anticipate little change in the labor market six months from now. This was offset by improving expectations for business conditions and incomes..”
