Consumer Confidence Declined in November

Index Levels Suggest Expansion Will Continue into Early 2022

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Nov 30, 2021, 10:00 ET

NEW YORK, Nov. 30, 2021 /PRNewswire/ --

Please note: The Consumer Confidence Index® release date for December 2021 data has changed. We will now be releasing the Index on December 22 at 10 AM ET, not December 28 at 10 AM ET as previously indicated.

The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index® decreased in November, following an increase in October. The Index now stands at 109.5 (1985=100), down from 111.6 in October. The Present Situation Index—based on consumers' assessment of current business and labor market conditions—fell to 142.5 from 145.5 last month. The Expectations Index—based on consumers' short-term outlook for income, business, and labor market conditions—fell to 87.6 from 89.0.

"Consumer confidence moderated in November, following a gain in October," said Lynn Franco, Senior Director of Economic Indicators at The Conference Board. "Expectations about short-term growth prospects ticked up, but job and income prospects ticked down. Concerns about rising prices—and, to a lesser degree, the Delta variant—were the primary drivers of the slight decline in confidence. Meanwhile, the proportion of consumers planning to purchase homes, automobiles, and major appliances over the next six months decreased. The Conference Board expects this to be a good holiday season for retailers and confidence levels suggest the economic expansion will continue into early 2022. However, both confidence and spending will likely face headwinds from rising prices and a potential resurgence of COVID-19 in the coming months."

Present Situation
Consumers' appraisal of current business conditions was less favorable in November.

17.0% of consumers said business conditions are "good," down from 18.3%.
29.0% of consumers said business conditions are "bad," up from 25.7%.

Consumers' assessment of the labor market was moderately more favorable.

58.0% of consumers said jobs are "plentiful," up from 54.8%.
Conversely, 11.1% of consumers said jobs are "hard to get," virtually unchanged from 11.0%.

Expectations Six Month Hence
Consumers' optimism about the short-term business conditions outlook increased in November.

24.1% of consumers expect business conditions will improve, up from 22.7%.
20.7% expect business conditions to worsen, down from 21.9%.

Consumers were less optimistic about the short-term labor market outlook.

22.1% of consumers expect more jobs to be available in the months ahead, down from 24.4%.
18.9% anticipate fewer jobs, up slightly from 18.7%.

Consumers were less positive about their short-term financial prospects.

17.9% of consumers expect their incomes to increase, down from 18.4%.
12.0% expect their incomes will decrease, up from 11.2%.

The monthly Consumer Confidence Survey®, based on an online sample, is conducted for The Conference Board by Toluna, a technology company that delivers real-time consumer insights and market research through its innovative technology, expertise, and panel of over 36 million consumers. The cutoff date for the preliminary results was November 19, before recent news of the Omicron COVID-19 variant.

Source: November 2021 Consumer Confidence Survey^®
The Conference Board / Release #9058

The Conference Board publishes the Consumer Confidence Index^® at 10 a.m. ET on the last Tuesday of every month. Subscription information and the technical notes to this series are available on The Conference Board website: https://www.conference-board.org/data/consumerdata.cfm.

About The Conference Board
The Conference Board is the member-driven think tank that delivers trusted insights for what's ahead. Founded in 1916, we are a non-partisan, not-for-profit entity holding 501 (c) (3) tax-exempt status in the United States. www.conference-board.org • Learn more about our mission and becoming a member

SOURCE The Conference Board