Highlights
Consumer confidence is on the skids apparently reflecting new pessimism on the jobs market, according to results of the Conference Board's consumer confidence report for August which showed a lower-than-expected index of 99.6 vs. 107.0 in July. Bonds firmed and the dollar dipped in initial reaction to the results.

Big swings are not unusual for this index but are usually tied to major events, such as Katrina last year. The current drop, consistent with similar trouble in the University of Michigan's mid-month consumer sentiment report, is a bit puzzling given an absence of major events and the easing underway in gas prices.

But job assessments in the report definitely took a turn for the worst. Those saying jobs are hard to get rose 1.5 percentage points in the month to 21.1 percent, while those saying jobs are plentiful fell 4.2 points to 24.4 percent. The six-month outlook for jobs also darkened, with fewer seeing more jobs and more seeing fewer jobs.

Shifts in confidence don't always match up with shifts in the economy, but today's data, especially on the jobs markets, may raise questions over the health of payroll growth in Friday's August employment report.

2006 Release Schedule

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