Consumer confidence picked up this month, The Conference Board reported. Its Consumer Confidence Index for September rose to a level of 101.8, up from August’s reading of 86.3.
“Consumer Confidence increased sharply in September, after back-to-back monthly declines, but remains below pre-pandemic levels,” said Lynn Franco, senior director of economic indicators at The Conference Board. “A more favorable view of current business and labor market conditions, coupled with renewed optimism about the short-term outlook, helped spur this month’s rebound in confidence.”
The percentage of consumer saying business conditions are “good” rose to 18.3% this month from 16.0% in August. Those saying business conditions are “bad” fell to 37.4% this month from 43.3% in August.
Consumers were also more optimistic about the labor market. The percentage of consumers saying jobs are “plentiful” rose to 22.9% this month from 21.4% in August. Conversely, those saying jobs are “hard to get” fell to 20.0% from 23.6% last month.