The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index Rebounded in February

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The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index increased in February, following a decline in January. The Index now stands at 131.4 (1985=100), up from 121.7 in January. The Present Situation Index—based on consumers’ assessment of current business and labor market conditions—improved, from 170.2 to 173.5. The Expectations Index—based on consumers’ short-term outlook for income, business and labor market conditions—increased from 89.4 last month to 103.4 this month.

“Consumer Confidence rebounded in February, following three months of consecutive declines,” said Lynn Franco, Senior Director of Economic Indicators at The Conference Board. “The Present Situation Index improved, as consumers continue to view both business and labor market conditions favorably. Expectations, which had been negatively impacted in recent months by financial market volatility and the government shutdown, recovered in February. Looking ahead, consumers expect the economy to continue expanding. However, according to The Conference Board’s economic forecasts, the pace of expansion is expected to moderate in 2019.”

The monthly Consumer Confidence Survey, based on a probability-design random sample, is conducted for The Conference Board by Nielsen, a leading global provider of information and analytics around what consumers buy and watch. The cutoff date for the preliminary results was February 15.

Consumers’ appraisal of current conditions improved moderately in February. Those stating business conditions are “good” increased from 36.4% to 41.2%, while those saying business conditions are “bad” was unchanged at 10.8%. Consumers’ assessment of the labor market was mixed. Those stating jobs are “plentiful” decreased slightly from 46.7% to 46.1%, while those claiming jobs are “hard to get” also decreased, from 12.6% to 11.8%.

Consumers’ optimism about the short-term future rebounded in February. The%age of consumers expecting business conditions will improve over the next six months increased from 16.3% to 19.7%, while those expecting business conditions will worsen decreased from 13.8% to 8.9%.

Consumers’ outlook for the labor market was also more favorable. The proportion expecting more jobs in the months ahead increased from 15.3% to 18.5%, while those anticipating fewer jobs declined, from 16.2% to 12.2%. Regarding their short-term income prospects, the%age of consumers expecting an improvement rose from 17.7% to 20.0%, but the proportion expecting a decrease also increased, from 6.8% to 8.5%.

About The Conference Board

The Conference Board is the member-driven think tank that delivers trusted insights for what’s ahead. Founded in 1916, we are a non-partisan, not-for-profit entity holding 501 (c) (3) tax-exempt status in the United States.

About NIELSEN

Nielsen Holdings plc is a global performance management company that provides a comprehensive understanding of what consumers watch and buy. Nielsen's Watch segment provides media and advertising clients with Total Audience measurement services for all devices on which content—video, audio and text—is consumed. The Buy segment offers consumer packaged goods manufacturers and retailers the industry's only global view of retail performance measurement. By integrating information from its Watch and Buy segments and other data sources, Nielsen also provides its clients with analytics that help improve performance. Nielsen, an S&P 500 company, has operations in over 100 countries, covering more than 90% of the world’s population.