Consumer Confidence: Slump But Hints of Encouragement

Bottom Line:  The Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index fell less than expected in April, as consumers' assessments of their current conditions fell sharply, but their future outlooks slipped only slightly. Their assessments of the jobs markets led the decline in current conditions, with fewer consumers reporting jobs were "plentiful" and more reporting jobs were "hard to get." On the plus side, income expectations were slightly higher, and inflation expectations eased slightly. And consumers reported slightly more plans to purchase durable goods than they did in April. Finally, we should note this survey was done before the debt ceiling news this weekend. Overall, the survey paints a slightly better picture of consumer confidence than the Michigan survey, suggesting the consumer still has significant worries but is likely willing to spend as uncertainties including inflation, high-interest rates, and government policy slowly pass.