biz.yahoo.com
U.S. consumer confidence 117.3 in Oct
- Conf Board
NEW YORK, Oct 27 (Reuters) - The Conference Board said
Tuesday its consumer confidence index sagged nine points in
October to 117.3 from a revised 126.4 in September, reflecting
growing consumer pessimism.
The sharp decrease in the index was caused by dips in optimism about both current and future
economic growth, the Conference Board's report said.
The present situation index declined to 163.5 in October from a revised reading of 170.7 in the prior
month. The expectations component dropped to 86.6 in October, after a revised reading of 96.8 in
September.
''Growing anxiety about the financial markets, combined with political concerns and recent layoff
announcements, have given consumers the jitters,'' said Lynn Franco, Associate Director of the
Conference Board's Consumer Research Center.
''While the overall level of consumer confidence in still high by historical standards, consumer
expectations have deteriorated to a level associated with sluggish economic growth,'' she said.
Any further decline in the index could mean a bleak season ahead for retailers, Franco added.
Fewer than 39 percent of consumers rated current business conditions as ''good,'' down from 41
percent in September. Ten percent expect conditions to worsen in the next six months, up slightly
from nine percent in the prior month.
The Conference Board's survey also showed consumers are more nervous about the job market.
Jobs are ''hard to get,'' according to 16 percent of consumers, up from more than 14 last month,
and 18 percent expect jobs to become less plentiful in the next six months, up from 16 percent in
September.
The Conference Board surveys about 5,000 U.S. households each month. |
