US consumer confidence for August 2020
- Prior was 92.6
- Present situation 84.8 vs 94.2 prior
- Expectations 85.2 vs 91.5 prior
- Jobs hard-to-get 25.2 vs 20.1
This is a big surprise to the downside and shows the impact of expired stimulus payments.
"Consumer Confidence declined in August for the second consecutive month," said Lynn Franco, Senior Director of Economic Indicators at The Conference Board. "The Present Situation Index decreased sharply, with consumers stating that both business and employment conditions had deteriorated over the past month. Consumers' optimism about the short-term outlook, and their financial prospects, also declined and continues on a downward path. Consumer spending has rebounded in recent months but increasing concerns amongst consumers about the economic outlook and their financial well-being will likely cause spending to cool in the months ahead."
The 'plans to buy within six months' measures of autos, homes and major appliances all fell sharply and are below year-ago levels.
That suggests that consumers may have seen low interest rates and stimulus payments as a one-time windfall to capitalize on, pulling forward some nascent demand.
