Consumer confidence rose more than expected in August, although consumers’ assessment of the labor market remained weak.
the Last indicator reading The U.S. manufacturing purchasing managers’ index came in at 103.3, up from 101.9 in July and above the 100.7 forecast by economists surveyed by Bloomberg.
“Consumer confidence rose overall in August, but remained within the narrow range that has prevailed over the past two years,” said Dana Peterson, chief economist at The Conference Board. “Consumers continued to express mixed sentiment in August. Compared to July, they were more optimistic about business conditions, both current and future, but they were also more concerned about the labor market.”
“Consumers’ assessments of the current labor situation, while positive, continued to weaken, and assessments of the future labor market were more pessimistic. This likely reflects the recent increase in unemployment. Consumers were also less optimistic about future income,” Peterson added.
The report comes as recent economic data has shown weakness in the labor market. In July, the unemployment rate hit 4.3%, its highest level in nearly three years. At the same time, the U.S. labor market added 114,000 jobs, the second-lowest monthly total since 2020.
In the August consumer confidence report, 32.8% of people said jobs were “plentiful,” down from 33.4% in July. Meanwhile, 16.4% said jobs were “hard to come by,” up slightly from 16.3%.