Overview
- The Conference Board said Tuesday that its Consumer Confidence Index fell to 89.4 in August, the weakest reading in seven months.
- The Expectations Index, which tracks consumers’ views of incomes, business and jobs over the next six months, plunged about six points to roughly 68.2 while the Present Situation Index rose to 121.2.
- Household worries were driven in part by higher gasoline, which is above $4 per gallon, and a jump in broader price pressures with the PCE inflation gauge at 3.7% year‑over‑year in June.
- Economic data show growing strain on the labor market and housing: employers cut 23,000 jobs in July with revisions removing 103,000 payrolls, unemployment eased to 4.1 as people left the labor force, new home prices rose 4.1% month‑to‑month and new‑home sales fell about 10.5% in July.
- Political actors tied the slump to administration policy, and the drop in expectations is important because it tends to predict near‑term household spending that could affect Fed rate choices and the midterm vote.