- Gennadiy Goldberg, U.S. strategist at TD Securities
Mood across American consumers eased from a six-year high in June, as progress in the closely-watched labour market supported consumers' views of the economic outlook. According to the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan, a gauge of consumer sentiment dropped to 82.7 this month, down from 84.5 in the preceding month that was the highest since July 2007. Analysts, however, expected a flat reading. Meantime, a measure of current conditions, which takes stock of American's views of their personal finances, tumbled to 92.1 from 98 in May. Data also showed that the index of expectations of six months from now climbed to 76.7 in June, hitting the highest since November.
In a separate report, the Federal Reserve said the U.S. industrial production remained steady in May, as a drop in utility use offset gains in manufacturing and mining sectors. May's output at the nation's factories, mines and utilities followed a revised 0.4% drop in April. Manufacturing sector accounts for around 75% of total production and it declined 0.1% in May after falling 0.4% in the prior month. Business investment has slowed as the world's largest economy is living through recent budget cuts and tax hikes. In the meantime, the auto industry still remains a bright spot for manufacturers, which are affected by a recession in Europe and a slowdown in the growth of the world's second largest economy.
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