Consumer Sentiment Down in October
October 16, 2009 by Mark Ellis
Filed under Business
According to the Reuters/University of Michigan index, consumer sentiment fell sharply in October, plunging from 73.5 to 69.4 throughout the course of the month. The result is worse than analysts expected, as the average analyst estimate for the state of consumer sentiment this month was 72.0, signaling that the economy might be more difficult to predict than would be hoped.
September’s consumer sentiment level marked an 8 point jump to its highest level since January 2008 and a moderate decline from that number was expected as a natural part of economic recovery. Analysts say that the drop indicates that the U.S. consumer will face a more difficult time getting back on his or her feet after suffering through the recession.
C0nsumers continue to face high unemployment, rising job losses, weak income growth, and massive amounts of debt, problems that will most likely impede economic growth significantly even if all other economic factors go back to normal. Even with the larger-than-expected drop in consumer sentiment, the figure is far below its long-term average, which is in the 80s.
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