U.S. consumer confidence drops again in May

NEW YORK – May 31, 2016 – The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index declined in May after a decrease in April. The Index now stands at 92.6, down from 94.7 month-to-month.

The Present Situation Index decreased from 117.1 to 112.9, while the Expectations Index – which gauges attitudes about future conditions – declined from 79.7 to 79.0 in May.

“Consumer confidence declined slightly in May, primarily due to consumers rating current conditions less favorably than in April,” says Lynn Franco, Director of Economic Indicators at The Conference Board. “Expectations declined further as consumers remain cautious about the outlook for business and labor market conditions. Thus, they continue to expect little change in economic activity in the months ahead.”

Consumers’ assessment of current conditions weakened in May. The percentage stating business conditions are “good” improved from 24.2 percent to 25.9 percent. However, those saying business conditions are “bad” also increased, from 18.2 percent to 21.6 percent.

Consumers’ appraisal of the labor market was less favorable. The proportion claiming jobs are “plentiful” was virtually unchanged at 24.3 percent, however those claiming jobs are “hard to get” increased from 22.8 percent to 24.4 percent.

Consumers were less optimistic about the short-term outlook than last month. Those expecting business conditions to improve over the next six months increased from 13.8 percent to 15.1 percent, but those expecting business conditions to worsen also rose, from 10.8 percent to 11.6 percent.

Consumers’ outlook for the labor market was also less favorable overall. While the percentage of people anticipating more jobs in the months ahead was virtually unchanged at 12.8 percent, those anticipating fewer jobs increased from 16.7 percent to 18.1 percent.

The proportion of consumers expecting their incomes to increase improved from 15.8 percent to 16.2 percent, while the proportion expecting a reduction in income remained steady at 12.4 percent. Read More – Click Here!