No confidence
U.S. consumers’ faith in the economy hit the doldrums
Worried about ever-increasing gas prices, the struggling real estate market and the outlook on jobs? If so, you’re far from alone. The Conference Board recently released its Consumer Confidence Index and the report isn’t pretty. In fact, June’s sampling of 5,000 households indicates the nation’s consumer confidence (50.4 percent) has reached its fifth-lowest reading in the history of the study. It also slipped about 8 percent from May. Meanwhile, the Expectations Index has reached an all-time low (41.1 percent). Here are the respondents’ views during the past few months. Read ’em and weep.
| Claim | May | June | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Business conditions are bad | 29.7% | 32.5% | |
| Business conditions are good | 13% | 11.5% | |
| Jobs are hard to get | 28.3% | 30.5% | |
| Jobs are plentiful | 16.1% | 14.1% | |
| Expect business conditions to worsen over the next six months | 32.9% | 33.9% | |
| Expect business conditions to improve over the next six months | 10.6% | 8.8% | |
| Expect fewer jobs in the months ahead | 32.3% | 35.5% | |
| Expect more jobs in the months ahead | 9% | 8% |
Source: www.conference-board.org
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