(Washington) Consumer confidence in the United States improved significantly, more than expected in June, reaching its highest level in four months, as households showed signs of relief from slowing inflation and after the dispute over the debt ceiling was resolved earlier this month.
The index measuring this confidence rose 8.8% from May, to 64.4 points, according to final results released Friday by the University of Michigan.
This is still above the expectations of analysts, who anticipated the index at 63.9 points, the level given during the interim estimate in mid-June, according to the consensus published by Briefing.com.
The improvement concerns “all demographic groups”, noted Joanna Hsu, director of the survey quoted in the press release, as well as their views on current conditions as well as the medium-term outlook.
Nonetheless, “their sentiment about their personal situation remains unchanged, as continued high prices…continue to weigh on consumer sentiment,” Ms. Hsu recalled.
As for their expectations for inflation, it has also improved, with US consumers now expecting it at 3.3% by the end of the year, while they were still expecting it at 4.2. % on this date last month.
The two inflation indices in the United States fell sharply in May, falling below the 4% mark for the PCE index (3.8%) published on Friday and which is the one taken into account by the Fed for its monetary policy, and settling at 4% for the CPI index, on which pensions are calculated in particular.
