Consumer Confidence Index Drops Nearly 15 Points in August
The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index, which had improved slightly in July, plummeted in August. The index now stands at 44.5 (1985=100), down from 59.2 in July. The Present Situation Index decreased to 33.3 from 35.7. The Expectations Index decreased to 51.9 from 74.9 in July.
Consumers’ appraisal of present-day conditions weakened further in August. Consumers claiming business conditions are “bad” increased to 40.6% from 38.7%, while those claiming business conditions are “good” inched up to 13.7% from 13.5%. Consumers’ assessment of employment conditions was more pessimistic than last month. Those claiming jobs are “hard to get” increased to 49.1% from 44.8%, while those stating jobs are “plentiful” declined to 4.7% from 5.1%.