The Final August U of Michigan confidence figure was 65.7, above the preliminary reading of 63.2, higher than the consensus estimate of 64 but is a touch below the 66 seen in July. Both Current Conditions and the Future Outlook rose from the Aug preliminary number. However, from July, Current Conditions fell almost 4 points but was partially offset by a 1.8 jump in the Outlook. YTD, Current Conditions are only 3.3 points above the low in March while the Outlook is 14.5 points above the Feb low. This discrepancy over how people feel today vs the improvement they foresee has been evident in other confidence figures, and was seen in Tuesday’s Conference Board confidence number. Inflation expectations were unchanged with the initial reading at 2.8% and down .1% from July.
