Consumer Confidence

Economic data continues to show that the economy is slowly recovering from what many are calling the Second Great Contraction or the Great Recession but the news still contains a number of stories suggestive of a double dip recession.  (HT Drudge Report) An AP story posted by CNBC News reports that consumer confidence dropped sharply ("Consumer Confidence Drops In June On Jobs Worries").  The idea behind the survey is that as confidence rises, consumers engage in more commerce and when it falls, in less.  This month's report is disappointing. 

Americans, worried about jobs and the sluggish economic recovery, are having a relapse in confidence, causing a widely watched index to tumble in June and raising concerns about consumer spending in the critical months ahead.

The Conference Board, a private research group based in New York, said Tuesday that its Consumer Confidence Index dropped almost 10 points to 52.9, down from the revised 62.7 in May.

Economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters had been expecting the reading to dip slightly to 62.8. June's reading marked the biggest drop since February, when the index fell 10 points.

The index had risen for three straight months since then.

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