The stock market might have declined for two consecutive days, but the Conference Board reports today that consumers’ optimism about the short-term outlook improved in January, following a sharp decline in December.
The percentage of consumers anticipating business conditions to improve over the next six months increased marginally, to 22% from 21.6%, while those expecting business conditions to worsen increased to 9.8% from 9%.
Consumers’ outlook for the job market was also less negative than in December. The proportion expecting more jobs in the months ahead was virtually unchanged at 19%, while those anticipating fewer jobs declined to 11.8% from 15.9%.
Regarding their short-term income prospects, the percentage of consumers expecting an improvement decreased to 20.4% from 22.7%, while the proportion expecting a decrease also declined, to 7.7% from 9%.
“Consumer confidence improved in January after declining in December,” said Lynn Franco, Director of Economic Indicators at The Conference Board. “Consumers’ assessment of current conditions decreased slightly, but remains at historically strong levels. Expectations improved, though consumers were somewhat ambivalent about their income prospects over the coming months, perhaps the result of some uncertainty regarding the impact of the tax plan. Overall, however, consumers remain quite confident that the solid pace of growth seen in late 2017 will continue into 2018.”