Consumer Sentiment Posts Rebound in September

Source: University of Michigan

Consumer sentiment posted a rebound in September, but the latest figures still indicate depressed optimism. XLY is up 0.24%, while VCR is up 0.01%.

• The Index of Consumer Sentiment stood at 72.8 in September, up 3.6% from the 70.3 reading in August and 9.5% lower than the 80.4 recorded September last year.
• The Current Economic Conditions index was recorded at 80.1, up 2.0% from 78.5 in August by down 8.8% from 87.8 the same month last year.
• The Index of Consumer Expectations was 68.1, up 4.6% from 65.1 in August but down 9.9% from 75.6 in September.
• Chief Economist Richard Curtin said that while the figure indicated an increase, the overall gain still means the continuation of depressed optimism due to the Delta variant.
• Other factors include sustained inflation and unfavorable long-term prospects for the national economy.
• Consumers are not optimistic about the economic conditions, indicating that they do not believe that the current scenario is conducive to establishing inflationary psychology.