The Consumer Confidence Index ebbed in February, according to the Conference Board. The Consumer Confidence Index declined to 92.2 in February, from 97.9 in January. After a modest increase in January, both the present situation index and the expectations index decreased in February. The present situation index in February decreased to 112.1, from 116.7 in January; the expectations index dropped to 78.9 in February, from 85.3 in January.
In February, consumers were more pessimistic about the current condition and the short-term outlook than in January. In February, 19.8 percent of respondents reported that the present business conditions were “bad”, an increase from 18.8 percent in January. Also, the share of respondents expecting business conditions to worsen over the next six months increased by 1.3 percent, to 12.0 percent in February.
The Conference Board also reported the shares of respondents planning to buy a home within six months. The share of respondents planning to buy a lived-in home within six months dropped to 2.5 percent in February, from 3.7 percent in January. The share of respondents planning to buy a new home within six months declined to 1.1 percent in February, from 1.2 percent in January.
Overall, despite the monthly volatility, the trends in the shares of respondents planning to buy a new home and the shares of respondents planning to buy a lived-in home within six months are climbing up from the trough and consumer confidence remains at a relatively high level by historical standards.
This post was originally published on NAHB’s blog, Eye on Housing.
