The Conference Board reported Tuesday morning that its consumer confidence index for the month of March rose to 101.3 from 98.8 in February. The expectations index jumped to 96.0 in March, up from 90.0 in February, but the present situation index dropped from 112.1 in February to 109.1 in March.
The assessment of present-day conditions turned less favorable for a second straight month. The percentage of consumers who said business conditions are “good” was unchanged at 26.7%, while those claiming business conditions are “bad” increased from 16.7% to 19.4%.
Consumers’ assessment of the job market was mixed in March. The proportion stating jobs are “plentiful” edged up from 20.3% to 20.6%, while those claiming jobs are “hard to get” edged up from 25.1% to 25.4%.
The director of economic indicators at the Conference Board said:
Consumer confidence improved in March after retreating in February. This month’s increase was driven by an improved short-term outlook for both employment and income prospects; consumers were less upbeat about business conditions. Consumers’ assessment of current conditions declined for the second consecutive month, suggesting that growth may have softened in Q1, and doesn’t appear to be gaining any significant momentum heading into the spring months.
Optimism about the short-term outlook, which had declined in February, rebounded in March. The percentage of consumers expecting business conditions to improve over the next six months decreased slightly, from 17.6% to 16.7%. Those expecting business conditions to worsen also fell, from 8.9% to 8%.
The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Survey is based on a probability-design random sample and is conducted for The Conference Board by Nielsen. The index baseline is 1985 = 100.
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