US consumer confidence falls for second month

US consumer confidence falls for second month

"Pessimism" about short-term economic conditions prompted the decline

Consumer confidence in the US fell for the second straight month, according to the monthly Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index. The Conference Board said that both indices for “The Present Situation” and “Expectations Index” fell in May and then again in June.

“This month’s decline in consumer confidence was driven by a less favourable assessment of current conditions and continued pessimism about the short-term outlook,” said Lynn Franco, director of the Conference Board Consumer Research Center, in a statement. “Consumers rated both current business and labor market conditions less favourably than in May, and fewer consumers than last month foresee conditions improving over the next six months.”

Franco said that inflation fears eased last month but consumers were concerned about income prospects. “Given the combination of uneasiness about the economic outlook and future earnings, consumers are likely to continue weighing their spending decisions quite carefully,” said Franco.

New-boat sales in the US have historically tracked somewhat closely to the Consumer Confidence Index, according to NMMA data.


Source: IBIPLUS, 29 June 2011