U.S. Consumer Confidence Improves in September

RAPAPORT... Consumer confidence in the U.S. rose 13 percent year on year to 79.7 points in September, according to the  Conference Board. However, the Consumer Confidence Index® fell slightly from a reading of 81.8 points in August. The Present Situation Index jumped to 73.2 points from 50.2 points one year ago and the Expectations Index was basically flat at 84.1 points from 83.7 points in September 2012. While all three measures reflected fairly stable sentiment, there is room for a great deal of improvement given the indexes' benchmark of 100 points.

Lynn Franco, the director of economic indicators at the Conference Board, opined that consumers grew more concerned about the short-term outlook for both jobs and wages in September, while expectations for future business conditions were little changed. ''Consumers’ assessment of current business and labor market conditions was more positive. While overall economic conditions appear to have moderately improved, consumers are uncertain that the momentum can be sustained in the months ahead.''

The Conference Board's monthly survey concluded that 19.5 percent of consumers felt as though business conditions were “good,” while 23.9 percent claimed that  business conditions were “bad;” 11.5 percent said that jobs were “plentiful,” whereas 32.7 percent said that jobs were “hard to get.” Roughly 21 percent of consumers expect business conditions to improve over the next six months, while only 11 percent expect conditions to worsen.