US consumer confidence surprises to the upside, but further economic stimulus may be key
By Alexander Bueso
Date: Friday 11 Dec 2020
(Sharecast News) - US consumer confidence surprised to the upside last month as Democratic voters became "much more optimistic" following Joe Biden's win in the last presidential elections, the results of a closely-followed survey revealed.
According to a preliminary reading, the University of Michigan's consumer confidence index rose from November's print of 76.9 to 81.4.
Economists had forecast a decline to 76.3.
A sub-index tied to consumer expectations improved from 70.5 to 74.7, while another tied to how Americans view current economic conditions increased from 87.0 to 91.8.
Yet as Democrats grew more upbeat, Republicans became less optimistic, Richard Curtin, the survey's director said.
That was the opposite of what occured when Donald Trup won the previous elections, he added.
More specifically, an expectations index among Democratic voters had strengthened by 39.5 points over the past five months, while that for Republicans fell by 34.9 points.
"Just as four years ago, the post-election partisan shifts in economic expectations are too extreme to be justified by economic fundamentals," he continued.
"These divergences may persist largely unchanged in the year ahead."
"A renewed round of federal relief will prevent much greater financial harm to households, small firms, and local governments. Even if immediately adopted, the payments will not reach recipients for at least a month, allowing renewed hardships to dominate the holiday season. As a consequence, the DC dysfunction may act as the grinch that stole Christmas!"
Special promo:
Trading the Forex Market? Visit FXmania.com to get advanced infomation about currencies and the Foreign Exchange
Market.
Email this article to a friend
or share it with one of these popular networks:
You are here: news
10 Lower Thames St,
London EC3R 6EN