Consumer Confidence Hits New Low

By Toby Weber, Contributing Editor -- Foodservice Equipment & Supplies, 1/9/2009 11:04:00 AM

The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index set a record low in December by dropping nearly six points to 38.

The index is based on a representative survey of 5,000 domestic households. It consists of two main sections: the Present Situation Index and the Expectations Index, both of which declined in December.

The Present Situation Index experienced a steep drop in the latest survey, moving to 29.4 percent from 42.3 percent. Those who said current business conditions are “bad” increased to 46 percent from 40.6 percent, while those saying business conditions are “good” fell to 7.7 percent from the previous month’s level of 10.1 percent. Similarly, the percentage of those surveyed who said jobs are “hard to get” increased nearly five points to 42 percent, while those saying jobs are “plentiful” fell to 6.2 percent from 8.7 percent.

The Expectations Index also declined in December, though much less steeply than the Present Situation Index, falling by 2.4 points to 43.8. Both the number of those expecting business conditions to worsen and to improve increased. Consumer expectations for the labor market were similarly mixed.