The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index fell 9.7 points from December to 84.5, with consumers becoming more cautious about major spending decisions.“Confidence collapsed in January as consumer concerns increased about both the current situation and expectations for the future,” said Dana Peterson, chief economist at the research group.
She added that all five components of the index deteriorated, taking the overall level to its lowest level since May 2014 – “exceeding the depth of the Covid-19 pandemic.”
Views of current business conditions have “shrinked to barely positive”, while perceptions of working conditions have also weakened, the report said. Meanwhile, consumers were generally pessimistic about factors affecting the economy.
“References to prices and inflation, oil and gas prices and food and grocery prices remained high,” Peterson said.
“Mentions about tariffs and trade, politics and the labor market also increased in January, and references to healthcare/insurance and war continued to rise,” she added.Consumers also increasingly indicated that they did not plan to make any major purchases in the next six months, indicating that they are becoming more selective in their spending.
“Used cars, furniture, TVs and smartphones remained the most popular within their categories for future purchases,” The Conference Board said.
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