U.S. consumer confidence fell in August! Demand for electrical appliances is still rising!

U.S. consumer confidence fell in August, erasing consecutive gains in June and July, as inflation concerns resurfaced. The Conference Board's consumer confidence index fell to 106.1 in August from a downwardly revised 114.0 in July. The overall data reflected a decline in the current situation and expectations index.

"The data show that consumers are again concerned about rising prices overall, particularly for food and gasoline," said Dana Peterson, chief economist at the Conference Board.

The decline in consumer confidence was evident across all age groups, but was most pronounced among consumers with household incomes of $100,000 or more and those earning less than $50,000 . Sentiment among consumers with incomes between $50,000 and $99,999 was relatively stable.

“As optimism about employment conditions waned, assessments of current conditions declined in August: Fewer consumers said job opportunities were ‘plenty,’ while more said jobs were ‘hard to find,’ ” Peterson said. “Hard data confirm that job growth has slowed, overall wage gains are lower than a year ago, and the average number of weeks out of work is increasing.”

The expectations index based on consumers' near-term outlook for income, business and labor market conditions fell back to 80.2 in August, reversing a strong rebound to 88.0 in July.

“Expectations for the next six months have fallen to near the recession threshold of 80, reflecting diminished confidence in future business conditions, job opportunities and incomes,” Peterson said. “Consumers are likely to hear more bad news about corporate profits, while job openings are shrinking and interest rates continue to rise, making big-ticket items more expensive.”

Based on the six-month moving average, plans to purchase automobiles and appliances continue to trend upward, but plans to purchase a home (more in line with rising interest rates) continue to trend downward.

Peterson noted that despite the decline in overall confidence, consumers' vacation plans (especially overseas vacations) rose this month and were slightly higher than August 2022 data, indicating that consumers continue to prefer services spending.

Here are more findings from the August report:

• Consumers' assessments of current business conditions declined slightly in August.

• 20.7% of consumers said business conditions were "good", the same as in July.

• 17.2% of respondents said business conditions were "bad," compared with 16.2%.
  Consumers' assessment of the labor market deteriorated in August.

• 40.3% of consumers said job opportunities were "ample," down from 43.7% in July.

• 14.1% of consumers said the job was "hard to find," compared with 11.3% in July.

Toluna, a technology company that provides real-time consumer insights and market research through its innovative technology, expertise and a panel of more than 36 million consumers, conducts the monthly online sample-based Consumer Confidence Survey® for Conference Board. The deadline for preliminary results is August 20.

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