By Kathleen Madigan
U.S. consumers in July are feeling better about the economy but remain
wary about the labor markets, according to a report released Tuesday.
The Conference Board, a private research group, said its index of
consumer confidence increased to 65.9 in July, from a revised 62.7 in
June, first reported as 62.0.
The latest index is better than the 61.4 expected by economists
surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires.
The drop contrasts with last week's report on the Thomson
Reuters-University of Michigan sentiment report that showed U.S.
consumers feeling less optimistic at the end of July.
Within the Conference Board's report, the present situation index, a
gauge of consumers' assessment of current economic conditions, slipped
to 46.2 from an unrevised 46.6.
Consumer expectations for economic activity over the next six months
rose to 79.1 in July from June's revised 73.4, originally reported as
72.3.
Lynn Franco, director of the Conference Board Consumer Research
Center, said that despite the July gain the index remains historically
low.
"While consumers expressed greater optimism about short-term business
and employment prospects, they have grown more pessimistic about their
earnings," Ms. Franco said. "Consumer confidence is not likely to gain
any significant momentum in the coming months."
Consumers were slightly less positive about current labor-market
conditions. The board's survey showed 7.8% of respondents think jobs
now are "plentiful," down from 8.3% thinking that in June. Another
40.8% think jobs are "hard to get," down only a bit from 41.2% last
month.
Consumers are about split in their attitudes about future income. Only
14.2% expect their incomes to rise in the next six months, down from
15.3% in June. Another 14.8% expect their earnings to fall, down from
15.1% saying that in June.
Write to Kathleen Madigan at kathleen.madigan@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 31, 2012 10:15 ET (14:15 GMT)
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