Confidence ticks up
By Furniture Today Staff -- Furniture Today, October 6, 2008
NEW YORK — The Consumer Confidence Index edged up slightly to 59.8 in September from 58.5 in August, several points ahead of its low point in June, according to The Conference Board.
The research organization said its preliminary survey, conducted through Sept. 23, showed a decline in the Present Situation Index to 58.5 in September from 65 in August, but a gain in the Expectations Index to 60.5 from 54.1.
“September's increase in the Consumer Confidence Index was due solely to an improvement in the short-term outlook,” said Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board Consumer Research Center.
“However, these results did not capture all of the tumultuous events in the financial sector this month, and until the dust settles a bit more, we will not know the full impact on consumers' expectations,” she said. “Shocks, such as the 1987 (stock market) crash, generally tend to have a temporary adverse effect on confidence, lasting on average two to four months, unless they result in significant job losses. Just as noteworthy, consumers' assessment of current conditions continues to indicate that the current economic environment remains quite weak.”
Consumers saying business conditions are “bad” rose to 34.2% in September from 32.7% in August, while those saying conditions are “good” declined to 12.5% from 13.7%. Consumers' assessment of the labor market also continued to deteriorate, with 32.8% saying jobs are “hard to get,” up from 31.7% in August, and 12.2% saying jobs are “plentiful,” down from 13.5% the previous month.
Consumers' short-term outlook improved but remained grim, the survey indicated. Those expecting business conditions to worsen over the next six months declined to 21.3% from 25.2%, while those expecting conditions to improve rose to 13.5% from 12%.
The percentage anticipating fewer jobs available in the months ahead declined to 26.8% from 30%, while those anticipating more jobs rose to 11.8% from 10.7%. The proportion of consumers expecting their incomes to increase in the coming months fell slightly to 14.2% from 15.4% in August.
