Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index up in Feb

28 Mar '07

2 min read

The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index, which had increased in February, retreated in March. The Index now stands at 107.2 (1985=100), down from 111.2 in February. The Expectations Index declined to 86.9 from 93.8. The Present Situation Index increased slightly to 137.6 from 137.1 in February.

The Consumer Confidence Survey is based on a representative sample of 5,000 U.S. households. The monthly survey is conducted for The Conference Board by TNS. TNS is the world's largest custom research company. The cutoff date for March's preliminary results was March 21st.

"Apprehension about the short-term future has suddenly cast a cloud over consumers' confidence," says Lynn Franco, Director of The Conference Board Consumer Research Center. "Despite diminishing expectations, consumers' assessment of present-day conditions remains steady and does not suggest a weakening in economic conditions."

"The recent turmoil in financial markets coupled with the run-up in gasoline prices may have contributed to consumers' heightened sense of uncertainty and concern. The direction of both components over the next few months bears watching to determine whether this decline is just a bump in the road or something more substantial."

Consumers' overall assessment of present-day conditions was little changed in March. Those claiming conditions are “good” dipped to 28.3 percent from 28.7 percent. Those saying conditions are “bad” was virtually unchanged at 14.9 percent.

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