Consumer confidence rises in December
By Furniture Today Staff -- Furniture Today, January 4, 2010
NEW YORK — Rising optimism about the future boosted the Consumer Confidence Index to 52.9 in December, up from 50.6 in November, The Conference Board reported.
The research organization's Expectations Index rose to 75.6 from 70.3 last month, but the Present Situation Index declined to 18.8 from 21.2 in November. (1985 = 100.)
“A more optimistic outlook for business and labor market conditions was the driving force behind the increase in the Expectations Index,” said Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board Consumer Research Center. “Regarding income, however, consumers remain rather pessimistic about their short-term prospects and this will likely continue to play a key role in spending decisions in early 2010.”
She said expectations for the short-term future increased to the highest level in two years, but the Present Situation Index remained at a 26-year low in December.
Consumers who said business conditions are “bad” increased to 46.6% in December from 44.5% the previous month, while those claiming conditions are “good” decreased to 7% from 8.1%. Consumers' appraisal of the job market was mixed. Those claiming jobs are “hard to get” decreased to 48.6% from 49.2%, while those claiming jobs are “plentiful” decreased to 2.9% from 3.1%.
Consumers' short-term outlook improved in December. Those anticipating business conditions will improve over the next six months increased to 21.3% from 19.7%, while those expecting they'll worsen decreased to 11.9% from 14.6%.
The outlook for the labor market also was more upbeat. The percentage of consumers expecting more jobs to become available in the months ahead increased to 16.2% from 15.8%, while those expecting fewer jobs decreased to 20.7% from 23.1%. The proportion of consumers anticipating an increase in their incomes decreased to 10.3% from 10.9%.
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