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2009 Economic Calendar |
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Resource Center » U.S. & Intl Recaps | Release Dates | Event Definitions | Today's Calendar
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The University of Michigan's Consumer Survey Center questions 500 households each month on their financial conditions and attitudes about the economy. Consumer sentiment is directly related to the strength of consumer spending. Consumer confidence and consumer sentiment are two ways of talking about consumer attitudes. Among economic reports, consumer sentiment refers to the Michigan survey while consumer confidence refers to The Conference Board's survey. Why Investors Care
| Released on 4/1/05 For Mar 2005 | ||||||||||
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Highlights
The University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index edged lower to 92.6 in March, down 3 tenths from the mid-month reading and vs. 94.1 in February. High gas prices and, as we learned this morning, a still tough jobs market are doing their damage on consumer psychology. Whether this leads to weakened retail spending has yet to be seen. Still, the Michigan results are likely to give bonds a new boost this morning and may perhaps weigh on the dollar.
At mid-month, the University of Michigan's consumer sentiment survey fell from the February average to 92.9. Given that higher gasoline prices were probably a factor in making consumers more pessimistic, it is likely that the full month reading won't show much improvement (gas prices were still high and rising!)
Consumer sentiment Consensus Forecast for Mar 05: 92.9
Range: 92.5 to 93.1
![[Chart]](chart.gif)
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Consumer sentiment is mainly affected by inflation and employment conditions. However, consumers are also impacted by current events such as bear & bull markets, geopolitical events such as war and terrorist attacks. Investors monitor consumer sentiment because it tends to have an impact on consumer spending over the long run (although not necessarily on a monthly basis.) |
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