Just as US macroeconomic data surprises collapse back to reality (but stocks hit record highs), so it appears the animal spirits of American Consumers are tumbling…
Hope lasted a few months in the 'real' data… but has collapse in the last month.
And as Gallup reports, Americans' views of the economy remain positive on balance, but just barely. Gallup's U.S. Economic Confidence Index averaged +3 for the week ending May 7. The index is down four points from two weeks ago and now sits at a nominal low for the year after trending downward from its early March peak.
Gallup's U.S. Economic Confidence Index is the average of two components: how Americans rate current economic conditions and whether they feel the economy is improving or getting worse. And that is where the bigger problem lies as it is 'hope' about the future that has really tumbled…
Fewer Americans last week said the economy was "getting better" (45%) than said it was "getting worse" (49%), leaving the economic outlook component at -4, its worst score since Trump's election (during the week of Nov. 7-13), when it measured -5. It is now nearly 20 points below its recent high of +15 set in early March and nine points lower than its average score in the post-election period.
So it seems record high stocks and recently dropping gas prices, along with a constant narrative of how well wages are growing, has done absolutely nothing to improve Americans' perspective on the economic outlook.
via http://ift.tt/2qOKzQz Tyler Durden