(Washington) Consumer confidence deteriorated slightly in February in the United States, according to the final estimate published Friday by the University of Michigan, which is less optimistic than the preliminary estimate published in the middle of the month.
The index measuring American consumer morale fell to 76.9 points in February, compared to 79 points in January, a decline of 2.7%.
This shows a deterioration compared to the preliminary estimate, published two weeks ago, which was more optimistic, and stood at 79.6 points, the highest level since July 2021. This also disappointed analysts, who saw the index remain at this level, according to briefing.com consensus.
Both components of the index are down compared to January: the sub-index measuring the perception of current conditions is at 79.4 points (-3.1%), and that measuring expectations for the months to come falls at 75.2 points (-2.5%).
“Expectations for economic conditions remained significantly higher than last fall,” however, underlines the director of the survey, Joanne Hsu, quoted in the press release.
Furthermore, “consumers have seen little change in the state of the economy since the start of the new year, and they seem convinced that inflation will continue on a favorable trajectory.”
The increase in consumer prices fell to 2.4% year-on-year in January, compared to 2.6% in December, as expected, according to the PCE index published Thursday by the Commerce Department, a measure of inflation favored by the American central bank, the Fed, which it wants to reduce to 2%. But over one month, it accelerated, to 0.3% compared to 0.1%.
Another measure of inflation, the Labor Department’s CPI index, had disappointed, its rise slowing much less than expected, and remaining above 3% (3.1%).