Global| Feb 01 2008Michigan Consumer Sentiment's Earlier Gains Diminished
by:Tom Moeller
|in:Economy in Brief
Summary
The University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index for all of last month did improve by 3.8% m/m to a reading of 78.4. But that gain was reduced by nearly one half from the rise reported at mid-month. A level for the month of 79 [...]
The University of Michigan's consumer sentiment index for all of last month did improve by 3.8% m/m to a reading of 78.4. But that gain was reduced by nearly one half from the rise reported at mid-month. A level for the month of 79 had been expected.
The current conditions index rose by 3.7% m/m, half the rise reported initially. The gain in current conditions for buying large household goods was reduced to 6.6% (-12% y/y). The gain in the view of current personal finances disintegrated to zero (-20.3% y/y) following two months of decline.
Improvement in expected business conditions during the next year was lowered slightly to 3.8% m/m (-22.3% y/y). Expectations for business conditions during the next five years disappeared (-42.4% y/y) but expectations for personal finances were slightly improved and rose 3.6% (-8.7% y/y).
Expectations for inflation during the next twelve months slipped to 4.0%. For the next five to ten years expectations similarly slipped to a 3.4% rise in prices, equal to the expected gain during all of last year.
Opinions about government policy rose, but by a reduced 5.4% m/m (-18.8% y/y).
The University of Michigan survey is not seasonally adjusted.The reading is based on telephone interviews with about 500 households at month-end; the mid-month results are based on about 300 interviews. The summary indexes are in Haver's USECON database, with details in the proprietary UMSCA database.
| University of Michigan | Jan (Final) | Jan (Prelim) | Dec | Nov | Jan y/y | 2006 | 2005 | 2004 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Consumer Sentiment | 78.4 | 80.5 | 75.5 | 76.1 | -19.1% | 87.3 | 88.5 | 95.2 |
| Current Conditions | 94.4 | 98.1 | 91.0 | 91.5 | -15.2% | 105.1 | 105.9 | 105.6 |
| Expectations | 68.1 | 69.1 | 65.6 | 66.2 | -22.3% | 75.9 | 77.4 | 88.5 |
Tom Moeller
AuthorMore in Author Profile »Prior to joining Haver Analytics in 2000, Mr. Moeller worked as the Economist at Chancellor Capital Management from 1985 to 1999. There, he developed comprehensive economic forecasts and interpreted economic data for equity and fixed income portfolio managers. Also at Chancellor, Mr. Moeller worked as an equity analyst and was responsible for researching and rating companies in the economically sensitive automobile and housing industries for investment in Chancellor’s equity portfolio. Prior to joining Chancellor, Mr. Moeller was an Economist at Citibank from 1979 to 1984. He also analyzed pricing behavior in the metals industry for the Council on Wage and Price Stability in Washington, D.C. In 1999, Mr. Moeller received the award for most accurate forecast from the Forecasters' Club of New York. From 1990 to 1992 he was President of the New York Association for Business Economists. Mr. Moeller earned an M.B.A. in Finance from Fordham University, where he graduated in 1987. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from George Washington University.
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