Research >> Economics
University of Michigan Consumer Confidence Preliminary December Results rose to 59.1
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Consumer sentiment rose 4% above November, recovering most of the losses from November but remaining low from a historical perspective. All components of the index lifted, with one-year business conditions surging 14% and long-term business conditions increasing a more modest 6%. Gains in the sentiment index were seen across multiple demographic groups, with particularly large increases for higher-income families and those with larger stock holdings, supported by recent rises in financial markets. Sentiment for Democrats and Independents rose 12% and 7%, respectively, while for Republicans it fell 6%. Throughout the survey, concerns over high prices—which remain high relative to just prior to this current inflationary episode—have eased modestly.
Year-ahead inflation expectations improved considerably but remained relatively high, falling from 4.9% to 4.6% in December, the lowest reading in 15 months but still well above 2 years ago. Declines in short-run inflation expectations were visible across the distribution of age, income, education, as well as political party identification. At 3.0%, long run inflation expectations has stayed within the narrow (albeit elevated) 2.9-3.1% range for 16 of the last 17 months.
Posted: December 9, 2022 Friday 10:00 AM