Early in January, the University of Michigan’s (UoM) Consumer Confidence Index increased from 59.7 in December to 64.6 in the US, reflecting an improvement in consumer optimism.
This figure was higher than the 60.5 market forecast.
The UoM said in its publication that “year-ahead inflation forecasts declined for the fourth consecutive month, falling to 4.0% in January from 4.4% in December.”
“The present value is the lowest since April 2021 but is still significantly higher than the 2.3-3.0% range experienced in the two years before the epidemic,” according to the report.
Last but not least, long-term inflation expectations were almost unchanged from December at 3.0%, remaining once again within the constrained range of 2.9-3.1% for 17 of the previous 18 months.
