The numbers: Consumer confidence in the US fell for the second consecutive month in December, hitting its lowest level since the worst period of the coronavirus blockage in May.
The consumer confidence index fell from a revised 92.9 in November to 88.6 this month, the Conference Board said Tuesday. Economists polled by MarketWatch had predicted confidence to rise to 96.7 in December. The index had reached 101.4 in October.
Confidence remains well below pre-pandemic levels. The index stood at 132.6 before the virus outbreak in February.
What happened: An index that tracks how consumers feel about the economy at the moment fell from 105.9 to 90.3 in November.
Another measure of how Americans see the next six months – the so-called index for future expectations – rose from 84.3 to 87.5.
Big picture: Increasing virus cases across the country and renewed restrictions on businesses are negative for sentiment. These are partially offset by rising house prices and news of vaccine roll-out. A separate degree of sentiment from the University of Michigan had improved in early December.
What the Conference Board Said: “Overall, growth seems to have weakened further in the fourth quarter and consumers do not expect the economy to gain significant momentum in early 2021,” said Lynn Franco, senior director of economic indicators at the Conference Board.
Market reaction: The Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA,
was down 131 points after the data was released.