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USA: consumer confidence rebounds in June

Consumer confidence in the United States continued to improve in early June, exceeding analysts’ expectations due to the reopening of the economy, according to the preliminary estimate from the University of Michigan survey released on Friday.

The general index stood at the beginning of June at 78.9 points against 72.3 points in May.

Confidence is “boosted by an improvement in the outlook for personal finances and a more favorable outlook for the national economy due to the reopening of the economy,” said Richard Curtin, the chief economist in charge of the survey in a statement.

Analysts had expected 75.8 points.

In detail, the component of the index measuring current economic conditions gained 5.5 points, going from 82.3 points at the end of May to 87.8 points at the beginning of June.

That measuring the economy in the next six months has recovered from 65.9 to 73.1 points (+ 7.2 points).

Consumer confidence, at very high levels in recent years thanks to personal financial gains, an enrichment of the real estate heritage and historically low unemployment, collapsed in March and April due to the pandemic of Covid-19, having paralyzed the economy, plunged the country into recession and put millions of people out of work.

“The recovery is largely due to the recovery in employment,” said Richard Curtin, adding that never, “in the long history of Michigan surveys,” have so many consumers expected a decline in unemployment rate.

However, “few consumers anticipate, in the near future, the restoration of a favorable economic situation” because of the financial difficulties caused by unemployment for the time being very high, he added.

Two thirds of those questioned therefore expect “financial difficulties for the whole economy during the coming year”.

Almost half of consumers are also anticipating “a new longer-term recession” due to a possible resurgence in the spread of the coronavirus.


ats, awp, afp

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