NEW YORK – After reaching record lows last month, consumer confidence rebounded slightly for February but still sits well below the heights reached in late 2024, according to the latest release from the Conference Board.
The Consumer Confidence Index increased by 2.2 points in February, bringing it to 91.2 from an upwardly revised 89.0 in January. The Expectations Index also saw an increase, rising 4.8 points to reach 72.0, but still sits under the 80-point mark that tends to signal recession.
“Confidence ticked up in February after falling in January, as consumers’ pessimistic expectations for the future eased somewhat,” said Dana M. Peterson, chief economist at the Conference Board. “Four of five components of the Index firmed. Nonetheless, the measure remained well below the four-year peak achieved in November 2024 (112.8).”
The Present Situation Index was the only one of the three indexes to not see positive results, dropping 1.8 points to 120.0. Net views on current business conditions fell to +0.7 percent, though perceptions of employment conditions improved slightly.
“Consumers’ write-in responses on factors affecting the economy continued to skew towards pessimism,” Peterson said. “Comments about prices, inflation and the cost of goods remained at the top of consumer’s minds. Mentions of trade and politics also increased in February. Labor market mentions eased a bit in February, while observations about immigration increased somewhat.”
Here are a few additional points from this month’s report:
Present Situation
Consumers’ views of current business conditions deteriorated on net in February.
- 19.7 percent of consumers said business conditions were “good,” a small uptick from 19.6 percent in January.
- 19.0 percent said business conditions were “bad,” up from 17.3 percent.
On net, consumers’ views of the labor market improved slightly in February.
- 28.0 percent of consumers said jobs were “plentiful,” up from 25.8 percent in January.
- 20.6 percent of consumers said jobs were “hard to get,” up from 19.0 percent.
Expectations Six Months Hence
Consumers were less pessimistic about future business conditions in February.
- 17.6 percent of consumers expected business conditions to improve, up from 16.5 percent in January.
- 21.0 percent expected business conditions to worsen, down from 23.7 percent.
Consumers were also less negative about the labor market outlook in February.
- 15.7 percent of consumers expected more jobs to be available, up from 14.8 percent in January.
- 26.1 percent anticipated fewer jobs, down from 28.7 percent.
Consumers’ outlook for their income prospects was slightly more optimistic in February.
- 17.3 percent of consumers expected their incomes to increase, up slightly from 17.2 percent in January.
- 12.3 percent expected their incomes to decline, down from 12.7 percent.
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