Consumer Confidence Slips in May
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Comstock Images/Thinkstock(WASHINGTON) — Consumer confidence dropped to 64.9 in May, according to the latest index compiled by private research group The Conference Board.
Last April, the index was up to 68.7 with hopes that falling gasoline prices would push the measure up past 70 this month. However, less pain at the pump didn’t translate into more confidence among the 500 Americans who were surveyed for the index.
They continue to see home prices slip, employers reluctant to make big hires, savings depleted by a lackluster month on Wall Street and ongoing problems with Greece threatening to leave the Eurozone.
A healthy economy would show the Consumer Confidence Index at 90. The last time that happened was December 2007. Just over a year later, with the Great Recession taking full hold of the economy, it slipped down to under 30.
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