Experts say the economy is getting better, but consumers don’t feel that way. Here’s why.
==========
High prices at the grocery store and consumers’ memories of their pre-pandemic budgets may be playing a role in how Americans feel about their finances as recession fears recede. The Consumer Confidence Index fell slightly in March from 104.8 to 104.7, well below some economist expectations. The percentage of consumers who expected their incomes to fall rose from 11.9% in February to 13.8% in March. Elizabeth Pancotti, director of special initiatives for the Roosevelt Institute, said that consumers’ experience of the economy and their financial situation may come down to crises they’re feeling that may not show up at a macro level but may strike their budgets particularly hard. Consumer sentiment, a smaller survey conducted by the University of Michigan, also gauges people’s sense of the economy overall, the labor market, and how they see inflation. On Thursday, U.S. consumer sentiment jumped to 79.4 from 76.9 in February and 62 a year earlier, making this its highest level since July 2021. Joanne Hsu, director of the survey, said in the report that this number is an indication that consumers believe the economy is “holding steady.” As the Federal Reserve looks to its favorite inflation measure, the personal consumption expenditures price index, economists are watching the PCE closely for signs the Fed will cut rates in the coming months. The PCE rose 0.3% from January to February and 2.5% over the past year, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis’s Friday release. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell responded to the news when he spoke at the San Francisco Fed and said the numbers were “in line with expectations” but not as reassuring as the numbers Fed officials saw last year.
#Economy #ConsumerConfidence #Recession #FinancialStability #Inflation #FederalReserve
https://www.griffindailynews.com/business/experts-say-the-economy-is-getting-better-but-consumers-don-t-feel-that-way-here/article_9255ef32-50b7-5853-922b-8e00b3a8a8e6.html
Griffin Daily News /
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2024-04-06 07:50:25
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2024-04-06 07:50:25Event JSON
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"content": "Experts say the economy is getting better, but consumers don’t feel that way. Here’s why.\n==========\n\nHigh prices at the grocery store and consumers’ memories of their pre-pandemic budgets may be playing a role in how Americans feel about their finances as recession fears recede. The Consumer Confidence Index fell slightly in March from 104.8 to 104.7, well below some economist expectations. The percentage of consumers who expected their incomes to fall rose from 11.9% in February to 13.8% in March. Elizabeth Pancotti, director of special initiatives for the Roosevelt Institute, said that consumers’ experience of the economy and their financial situation may come down to crises they’re feeling that may not show up at a macro level but may strike their budgets particularly hard. Consumer sentiment, a smaller survey conducted by the University of Michigan, also gauges people’s sense of the economy overall, the labor market, and how they see inflation. On Thursday, U.S. consumer sentiment jumped to 79.4 from 76.9 in February and 62 a year earlier, making this its highest level since July 2021. Joanne Hsu, director of the survey, said in the report that this number is an indication that consumers believe the economy is “holding steady.” As the Federal Reserve looks to its favorite inflation measure, the personal consumption expenditures price index, economists are watching the PCE closely for signs the Fed will cut rates in the coming months. The PCE rose 0.3% from January to February and 2.5% over the past year, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis’s Friday release. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell responded to the news when he spoke at the San Francisco Fed and said the numbers were “in line with expectations” but not as reassuring as the numbers Fed officials saw last year.\n\n#Economy #ConsumerConfidence #Recession #FinancialStability #Inflation #FederalReserve\n\nhttps://www.griffindailynews.com/business/experts-say-the-economy-is-getting-better-but-consumers-don-t-feel-that-way-here/article_9255ef32-50b7-5853-922b-8e00b3a8a8e6.html",
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