US consumer confidence little changed in April, price expectations tick up, University of Michigan says

(Sharecast News) - Consumer confidence in the U.S. was little changed at the start of April. That was so despite "some frustration" that the slowdown in inflation might have stalled, the results of a closely-followed survey revealed.

The University of Michigan's consumer confidence index dipped from a reading of 79.4 at the end of March to 77.9 for early April.

A decline in opinions around current economic conditions accounted for the bulk of the decline.

The corresponding sub-index fell from 82.5 to 79.3.

Survey director Joanne Hsu noted that the moves in the headline confidence gauge since January, within a 2.5 point range, were less than the five points needed for them to be statistically significant.

Inflation expectations however did tick slightly higher.

A sub-index tracking inflation expectations 12-months ahead rose from 2.9% to 3.1%, against a 2.3-3.0% range seen over the two years before Covid-19.

Long-run inflation expectations meanwhile rose from 2.8% to 3.0%.