Americans lost confidence in the economy in May, however they regained that confidence in June, according to the Consumer Confidence Survey conducted by The Conference Board by Nielsen, a provider of information and analytics around what consumers buy and watch.
The Consumer Confidence Index increased to 118.9 in June, up from 117.6 in May. The Present Situation Index increased from 140.6 to 146.3 but the Expectations Index dropped from 102.3 last month to 100.6 in June.
In 1985, the index was set to 100, representing the index's benchmark. This value is adjusted monthly based on results of a household survey of consumers' opinions on current conditions and future economic expectations. Opinions on current conditions make up 40% of the index, while expectations of future conditions make up 60%.
“Consumer confidence increased moderately in June following a small decline in May,” said Lynn Franco, The Conference Board director of economic indicators. “Consumers’ assessment of current conditions improved to a nearly 16-year high.”
“Expectations for the short-term have eased somewhat, but are still upbeat,” Franco said. “Overall, consumers anticipate the economy will continue expanding in the months ahead, but they do not foresee the pace of growth accelerating.”
Consumers were more optimistic about current conditions in June, as those saying business conditions are good increased from 29.8% to 30.8% and those saying conditions are bad dropped to 12.7%, down from 13.9% last month. The assessment of the labor market was also more positive as those who said jobs are plentiful increased from 30% to 32.8% last month. Those who said jobs are hard to get decreased from 18.3% to 18% in June.
However, Americans were less optimistic about the short-term outlook in June. The percentage of consumers expecting business conditions to improve over the next six months dropped from 21.5% to 20.4%, however those expecting business conditions to worsen decreased from 10.3% to 9.9%.
And confidence in the labor market remained mixed as the proportion expecting more jobs in the months ahead increased from 18.6% to 19.3%, but those anticipating fewer jobs increased from 12.2% to 14.6% in June. The percentage of consumers who are expecting an improvement in their income increased from 19.1% to 22.2%, however those expecting a decrease also increased from 8.7% to 9.2%.
