US Consumers More Confident About Jobs, Economy
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U.S. consumer confidence increased in November to the highest level in more than a year on optimism about the economy and labor market in the wake of Donald Trump’s election victory.
The Conference Board’s gauge of confidence rose 2.1 points to 111.7 this month, data released Nov. 26 showed. The figure was in line with the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of economists.
A gauge of present conditions increased to an eight-month high. The group’s measure of expectations for the next six months edged to an almost three-year high.
“November’s increase was mainly driven by more positive consumer assessments of the present situation, particularly regarding the labor market,” Dana Peterson, chief economist at the Conference Board, said in a statement. “Compared to October, consumers were also substantially more optimistic about future job availability, which reached its highest level in almost three years.”
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An easing in price pressures and still-favorable job market conditions are helping to shore up consumer attitudes. At the same time, buying conditions for big-ticket items dropped as many households remain financially stretched because of elevated interest rates and the rise in the cost of living over the past few years.
Homebuying plans also fell amid a rebound in mortgage rates. Separate figures Nov. 26 showed new-home sales dropped to an almost two-year low.
The share of consumers that said jobs were currently plentiful eased this month, though so did the share saying jobs were hard to get.
The difference between these two — a metric closely followed by economists to gauge the job market — widened for a second month. A larger share of respondents expect more jobs to be available in the next six months.
Inflation Views
Meanwhile, inflation expectations over the coming year dropped to the lowest level since March 2020. In answer to a special question from the Conference Board, consumers said their biggest concern for next year was higher prices.
The share of consumers who expect business conditions to improve increased to 23.5%, the largest since the start of 2022. Respondents’ assessments of their income prospects eased from a month earlier.
The share of respondents anticipating their financial situation to improve in the next six months continued to climb.
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