By WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. consumer confidence rose in August, but Americans are becoming more anxious about the labor market.
The Conference Board said on Tuesday its consumer confidence index increased to 103.3 this month from an upwardly revised 101.9 in July. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast the index would be little changed from the previously reported 100.3.
“Consumers assessments of the current labor situation, while still positive, continued to weaken, and assessments of the labor market going forward were more pessimistic,” said Dana Peterson, the chief economist at the Conference Board.
The share of consumers who viewed jobs as being “plentiful” slipped to 32.8% from 33.4% in July. Some 16.4% of consumers said jobs were “hard to get,” up from 16.3% last month.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell last Friday signaled interest rate cuts were imminent in a nod to growing worries over the labor market. Financial markets expect the U.S. central bank to kick off its easing cycle next month with a 25-basis-point rate reduction, though a half-percentage-point cut cannot be ruled out.
The Fed has maintained its benchmark overnight interest rate in the current 5.25%-5.50% range for more than a year, having raised the policy rate by 525 basis points in 2022 and 2023.
Consumers’ 12-month inflation expectations dropped to 4.9%, the lowest since March 2020.
