The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index®, which had decreased in February, improved in March. The Index now stands at 82.3 (1985=100), up from 78.3 in February. The Present Situation Index edged down to 80.4 from 81.0, while the Expectations Index increased to 83.5 from 76.5. CONT. The Conference Board Read more »
Will Americans Ever See the 1980s and Late 1990s Again?
Two periods of time in recent decades have marked a “boom” in the nation’s economic cycle. Those were the “Morning in America” Reagan years and the dot-com boom of the later Clinton years. … The last five or so years — within the recent memory of almost everyone now reading […] Read more »
5 key insights into the midterm elections, courtesy of Mitt Romney’s pollster
In a new episode of Political Wire’s podcast, we spoke to GOP polling guru Neil Newhouse, co-founder of Public Opinion Strategies and Mitt Romney’s one-time campaign pollster, about what recent polling data portends for the 2014 midterms and beyond. Here are five takeaways from our conversation: CONT. Taegan D. Goddard, […] Read more »
Slight Increase in U.S. Economic Confidence
Gallup’s U.S. Economic Confidence Index improved to -18 for the week ending March 16, after falling to -20 the prior week. Last week’s index is comparable to several so far in 2014, and represents a continuation of Americans’ negative economic outlook. CONT. Rebecca Riffkin, Gallup Read more »
Resurgent public optimism on the economy? Don’t hold your breath
One of the biggest political puzzles of 2014 is why the public remains so bearish about the economy, and in turn critical of Barack Obama’s stewardship of it, given clear signs that economic indicators are improving. As the new year began, the Associated Press summed up the optimistic outlook of […] Read more »
Consumer Comfort in U.S. Rises to Second-Highest Since August
Consumer confidence rose last week to the second-highest level since August as Americans grew more upbeat about the economy and buying climate. The Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index climbed to minus 27.6 in the period that ended March 9 from minus 28.5 the prior week. The advance was the fifth straight […] Read more »