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2008 Economic Calendar |
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Resource Center » U.S. & Intl Recaps | Release Dates | Why Investors Care | 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 4/13/07 For Apr 2007 | ||||||||||||
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Highlights
The Reuters/University of Michigan consumer sentiment index fell back to 85.3 at mid-month from 88.4 in March. Rising gas prices are a big reason for the decline and are reflected in inflation expectations, up 3 tenths to 3.3 percent.
The decline in sentiment was centered in expectations, a bad sign pointing to future declines in readings. The assessment of current conditions slipped only slightly.
Federal Reserve officials have been talking more and more about the need to dampen inflation expectations, making today's inflation reading a negative for the interest rate outlook. Nevertheless, the dip in the index and its implications for future economic growth was enough to trigger gains in the Treasury market. But the report, with its mix of slower growth and rising inflation, could prove a negative for the stock market.
The University of Michigan's Consumer sentiment index slipped to 88.4 in March from February's 91.3. Consumer sentiment has been declining while gasoline prices have been rising. Nonetheless, inflation expectations were unchanged in March at 3.0 percent. Several Fed officials have been talking up the importance of inflation expectations and on the need to bring them down to get actual inflation down.
Consumer sentiment Consensus Forecast for preliminary April 07: 87.5
Range: 87.0 to 90.0
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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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