"Households are getting a little bit jaded with the ongoing political stalemate"
- Paul Dales, a senior economist at Capital Economics Ltd.
Led by gloomier views on current conditions, sentiment among the U.S. consumers deteriorated further in January, reaching the lowest level in over a year. According to the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan, its gauge of consumer sentiment dropped to 71.3, the lowest since December 2011, from 72.9 the prior month. Index, however, was projected to jump to 75. At the same time, a measure of expectations six months from now tumbled to 62.7 from 63.8, while a measure of current economic conditions decreased to a six-month low of 84.8, from 87 in December.
"Households are getting a little bit jaded with the ongoing political stalemate," said Paul Dales, a senior economist at Capital Economics Ltd. in London, who projected a reading of 70. People are also seeing that their "after-tax income has fallen a little bit. On the face of it, any fall in confidence might suggest that spending might be slower."
"The continued fiscal policy uncertainty could keep confidence depressed for the next few months relative to the levels in October and November," Barclays analysts wrote in a research note prior to the data's release.
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