US Consumer Confidence Shows Modest Increase in March

The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index® increased slightly in March to 104.2, up from 103.4 in February, driven by an uptick in expectations, but remains below the average level seen in 2022. Consumers' assessment of current business and labor market conditions worsened in March, while their short-term outlook for income, business, and labor market conditions ticked up slightly. The survey also revealed that consumers plan to spend less on highly discretionary categories such as playing the lottery, visiting amusement parks, going to the movies, personal lodging, and dining, but will spend more on less discretionary categories such as health care, home or auto maintenance and repair, and economical entertainment options such as streaming. The latest results also reveal that their expectations of inflation over the next 12 months remains elevated—at 6.3 percent.