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Consumer confidence increases

Written by: Warren Gencher

Article Overview: Consumer Confidence Increases (12/5/2008)

Consumer confidence increases

Following an all-time low in October, consumer confidence rose slightly in November, according to a survey released by The Conference Board, a non-profit research group. The Consumer Confidence Index now stands at 44.9, up from 38.8 in October. "Inflation expectations, which have been at historically high levels in recent months, subsided considerably as a result of falling gas prices," says Lynn Franco, director of consumer research at The Conference Board.

Despite the moderate jump in confidence, respondents continue to feel the economy is steadily weakening. "Consumers remain extremely pessimistic and the possibility that economic growth will improve in the first half of 2009 remains highly unlikely," says Franco. Respondents' feelings about the job market and income levels remain mixed. While more people feel jobs are currently getting harder to find, there is optimism about the next six months. Nearly 10% of those surveyed expect there to be more job openings during that period. Only 7% felt that way in October. Also, 13% of consumers now anticipate a future increase in their incomes, up from 11% in October.

The Consumer Confidence Index is measured monthly, based on a survey of 5,000 US households. The Index is an average of several opinions, including business conditions, employment outlook and family incomes.

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Article Tags: business conditions, consumer confidence index, consumers, economic growth, economy, employment outlook, family incomes, feelings, franco, gas prices, households, inflation expectations, job openings, jobs, optimism, profit research group, respondents, six months



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