2018.06.2610:33:00UTC+00U.S. Consumer Confidence Unexpectedly Deteriorates In June

Reflecting a deterioration in expectations, the Conference Board released a report on Tuesday showing an unexpected decline in U.S. consumer confidence in the month of June.

The Conference Board said its consumer confidence index fell to 126.4 in June from a revised 128.8 in May. Economists had expected the index to inched up to 128.1 from the 128.0 originally reported for the previous month.

The unexpected decrease by the headline index was due to a drop by the expectations index, which slid to 103.2 in June from 107.2 in May.

The percentage of consumers anticipating business conditions will improve over the next six months decreased to 21.4 percent from 23.3 percent, while those expecting business conditions will worsen rose from 7.8 percent to 9.8 percent.

However, consumers' outlook for the labor market was slightly more favorable. The percentage expecting more jobs in the months ahead inched up to 20.0 percent from 19.7 percent and those anticipating fewer jobs dipped to 12.6 percent from 13.1 percent.

"While expectations remain high by historical standards, the modest curtailment in optimism suggests that consumers do not foresee the economy gaining much momentum in the months ahead," said Lynn Franco, Director of Economic Indicators at The Conference Board.

On the other hand, the Conference Board said its present situation index was nearly flat, edging down to 161.1 in June from 161.2 in May.

The percentage of consumers saying business conditions are "good" decreased to 36.0 percent from 38.6 percent, while those saying business conditions are "bad" also edged down to 11.7 percent from 12.6 percent.

Consumers' assessment of the labor market was also mixed. The percentage of consumers claiming jobs are "plentiful" decreased from 42.1 percent to 40.0 percent, but those claiming jobs are "hard to get" also decreased, from 15.6 percent to 14.9 percent.

"Consumers' assessment of present-day conditions was relatively unchanged, suggesting that the level of economic growth remains strong," said Franco.