Consumer Comfort in the U.S. Declines to Lowest in Five Weeks
Source: Bloomberg
Consumer confidence retreated to a five-week low as Americans became less enthusiastic about their personal finances and the buying climate.
The Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index declined to 42.8 in the period ended Oct. 25 from 43.5. After climbing 5 points from mid-September low to reach a six-month high on Oct. 11, the gauge has given up half the advance in the past two weeks. The measure is holding just below its average for the year.
Since reaching an almost eight-year high in April, consumer moods have settled into a see-saw pattern, similar to recent economic data. While payroll growth has slowed in the last two months and wage gains remain modest, home sales are holding up and gasoline prices are falling.
”Housing has been generally strong, unemployment low and gas prices dropping, but wage growth has been sluggish, with turmoil in the equity markets and international uncertainty,” said Gary Langer, president of New York-based Langer Research Associates LLC, which conducts the survey for Bloomberg.
Read more: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-10-29/consumer-comfort-in-the-u-s-declines-to-lowest-in-five-weeks
