Bags are displayed in the window of a Kate Spade store in Pittsburgh on Monday, Jan. 30, 2023. On Tuesday, the Conference Board reports on U.S. consumer confidence for February. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
Higher-income consumers are feeling better about the economy, and their optimism is helping lift the Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index.
The index, which tracks consumers' expectations of business and labor market conditions, increased slightly to 104.2 in March, up from 103.4 the month before.
"Driven by an uptick in expectations, consumer confidence improved somewhat in March, but remains below the average level seen in 2022 (104.5)," said Ataman Ozyildirim, senior director of economics at The Conference Board, in a press release. "The gain reflects an improved outlook for consumers under 55 years of age and for households earning $50,000 and over."
He added that while consumers are more optimistic about the near future, they are less sure about the current economy.
"The share of consumers saying jobs are 'plentiful' fell, while the share of those saying jobs are 'not so plentiful' rose," Ozyildirim said.
The index showed that consumers expect to spend less on discretionary purchases, such as entertainment and dining out, and more on less discretionary purchases, such as health care and home repairs.
The pandemic yielded government financial support and (eventually) a surprisingly strong job market — but racial wealth disparities grew. Why is it so difficult to close the wealth gap?
Plenty of retailers and suppliers are reducing the variety of their offerings to focus instead on what they think will sell best. Many businesses have decided less is better, justifying their limited selection by asserting shoppers don’t want so much choice.
Joe Pompliano, author of the Huddle Up newsletter, breaks down the biggest moments from Super Bowl LVIII, from potentially record-breaking viewership to Taylor Swift’s highly anticipated appearance.
David Wright, President and owner of Wright Financial Group, shares his thoughts on why the Federal Reserve seems hesitant to cut rates, and why regional bank stocks could help move the needle.
Disney and Fortnite-maker Epic Games will collab on making new video games with Disney characters. Hopefully it will be more than Mickey Mouse hitting the Griddy.
Hershey is cautioning on its 2024 profit growth as the company contends with rising cocoa costs, leading to increased prices for chocolate. The company anticipates its full-year earnings per share being relatively flat, partly due to higher cocoa and sugar costs.
Prince Harry has reached an out-of-court settlement with a tabloid newspaper publisher that invaded his privacy with phone hacking and other illegal snooping. Attorney David Sherborne said that Mirror Group Newspapers had agreed to pay Harry’ “substantial” costs and damages.
An attorney representing passengers of an Alaska Airlines flight that lost a door plug in midair says a “whistling sound” was heard on a previous flight of the same Boeing 737 Max 9.
