- Chris Rupkey, chief financial economist at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd.
Confidence among the U.S. consumers soared to the highest level since February 2008 this month, a sign U.S. household spending will keep gaining momentum. The Conference Board's said its index of consumer confidence climbed to 73.7 in November, from a revised 73.1 reading in the prior month and above analysts' expectations of an increase to 73.0. The improvement in data is adding to evidence that consumers are inspired by the improvement in the labor market. The current unemployment rate is 7.9% which is highly above pre-recession levels around 5%, but considerably lower from over 9% just over a year ago.
"Confidence is holding up well," said Chris Rupkey, chief financial economist at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd. in New York, who projected the confidence measure would climb to 74. "Spending is going to continue to increase. This bodes well for the fourth quarter."
Tuesday, the Commerce Department said that demand for core capital goods rose 1.7% in October, the best reading since a 2.3% growth in May. At the same time, total orders for durable goods remained unchanged in October at $216.9 billion, after a 9.2% jump in September that was mostly driven by a strong demand for commercial aircraft.
© Dukascopy Bank SA