US consumer confidence deteriorates in February
Americans’ assessments of the US economy and job market deteriorated in February amid stagnant wages and weak business investment, according to the latest measure of consumer confidence.
US consumer confidence fell more than expected this month to 96.4 from a revised January reading of 103.8, according to report released Tuesday by the Conference Board, a New York- based non-profit research group.
Economists surveyed by Bloomberg and The Wall Street Journal had forecast the consumer confidence index to drop but only to 99.5.
Consumer confidence is an economic indicator which gauges the level of optimism that consumers feel about their personal financial situation and the overall health of the economy.
The Conference Board’s index of the present situation, a measure of consumers’ assessment of current economic conditions, declined to 110.2 from 113.9 in January.
Consumer expectations for economic activity during the next six months dropped to 87.2 from 97.0 measured last month.
Economists believe slow wage growth and a gradual increase in gas prices after an initial sharp drop in January may hurt confidence levels in the coming months.
“All the confidence gauges are going to continue to give back ground as the novelty of lower gas prices dissipates,” said Mike Englund, chief economist at Action Economics LLC in Boulder, Colorado.
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