Consumer Confidence at Its Highest Since 2000

Consumer Confidence at Its Highest Since 2000

Overall the jobs reports during President Donald Trump have shown stellar economic growth with low unemployment and almost more jobs than job seekers. More jobs means more money for people, which means more money poured into the economy.

More news came out today as the research group The Conference Board revealed that consumer confidence is the highest its been since October 2000.

From The Associated Press:

The Conference Board reported Tuesday that its consumer confidence index rose to 133.4 in August, up from a reading 127.9 in July. It was the highest reading since confidence stood at 135.8 in October 2000.

Consumers’ confidence in their ability to get a job and the overall economy are seen as important indicators of how freely they will spend, especially on big-ticket items such as cars, in coming months. Consumer spending accounts for 70 percent of economic activity.

“Expectations, which had declined in June and July, bounced back in August and continue to suggest solid economic growth for the remainder of 2018,” said Lynn Franco, director of economic indicators at the Conference Board. “These historically high confidence levels should continue to support health consumer spending in the near term.”

via The Wall Street Journal

Franco also said that [C]onsumers’ assessment of current business and labor market conditions improved further.” Those who believe business conditions are “good” went up to 40.3% from 38.1% while those who believe the opposite went down to 9.1% from 10.3%.

Those surveyed who believe it’s hard to find a job went down a lot to 12.7% from 14.8%. The Conference Board continued:

Consumers’ optimism about the short-term outlook bounced back in August. The percentage of consumers anticipating business conditions will improve over the next six months increased from 22.9 percent to 24.3 percent, but those expecting business conditions will worsen marginally rose, from 10.3 percent to 10.5 percent.

Consumers’ outlook for the labor market was mixed. The proportion expecting more jobs in the months ahead decreased from 22.6 percent to 21.7 percent, while those anticipating fewer jobs also decreased, from 15.2 percent to 14.1 percent. Regarding their short-term income prospects, the percentage of consumers expecting an improvement rose from 20.4 percent to 25.5 percent, while the proportion expecting a decrease declined, from 9.4 percent to 7.0 percent.

From The Wall Street Journal:

Factors including a buoyant job market and rising incomes are helping Americans feel better about the economy.

“Going into August, all signs were green for continued increases in consumer sentiment and consumer confidence. So that’s what we’re seeing in the headline number here,” said David Deull, principal economist at IHS Markit.

A gauge of household assessments about the present economic situation increased in August, while an index tracking expectations for the future also rose after declining in June and July.

The gross domestic product (GDP) grew at an “annual rate of 4.1% in the second quarter,” which is between April and June.

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