US: Consumer confidence is going gangbusters - ANZ

According to research team at ANZ, US consumer confidence is going gangbusters as the Conference Board consumer confidence for March spiked to 125.6 (114 expected) with the take on the present and future situation each up around 10 points.

Key Quotes

“The headline reading is the highest since late 2000. The labour differential rose to 12.2 from 7.0, moving through its 2007 peak, with the proportion of people reporting jobs are “plentiful” seeing its biggest monthly gain in 43 years, while the proportion saying they are “hard to get” continued its downward trend. The Fed will be watching closely to see if confidence translates into spending, with reports of tough times in US retail.”

“Personal income and expenditure data released later this week is expected to show modest consumption, with income and expenditure seen at 0.4% m/m and 0.2% m/m respectively (but economists may be revising up these expectations as we speak).”

“US household debt as a proportion of disposable income has been steadily declining (down about 30 percentage points) since its 2008 peak, suggesting a bit more headroom to borrow, should consumers (and banks) feel so inclined.”