Confidence in economy increases during April, survey says

Confidence in economy increases during April, survey says

Consumers' outlook on current economic conditions is often reflected in the savings and spending habits - which in turn determine their debt utilization ratio and their credit score.

A recent survey of 5,000 U.S. households by the Conference Board showed that consumer confidence grew from 52.3 in March to last month's 57.9. This figure is measured on a scale of 100, with any number above 50 representing a positive sentiment.

This positivity was reflected in other indices released by the Conference Board. The Present Situation Index improved with 9.1 percent of respondents saying that current business conditions are good, while 40.2 percent said they were bad. This compares to March, when 8.5 percent of respondents called current conditions good and 42.1 percent of them said they were bad.

"Consumers' concerns about current business and labor market conditions eased again," Lynn Franco, director of the Conference Board Consumer Research Center, said. "And, their outlook regarding business conditions and the labor market was also more positive than last month."

More Americans felt that jobs were "plentiful" in April than March, while fewer called jobs "hard to get." The March unemployment rate was 9.7 percent, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, maintaining the level seen during the first two months of 2009. While unemployment figures have not yet been released for April, a report from the U.S. Department of Labor showed that jobless claims fell by 11,000 to 448,000 during the week ending April 24.

The improved employment outlook is echoed in the Conference Board's Expectations Index, which increased to 77.4 in April from the previous month's 70.4. Eighteen percent of respondents in the survey expect there to be more jobs in the coming six months, compared to the 14.1 percent with these beliefs during the previous month.

Market conditions may be right to enable consumers to bounce back from a job loss quicker than expected, according to a recent survey by CareerBuilder.com. Fifty-one percent of respondents who were laid off during the previous three months have already found new part- or full-time employment.

"Not only is this a positive indicator for the labor market, it also shows that job seekers are being resourceful in their job hunts and are open to different types of opportunities," Brent Rasmussen, president of CareerBuilder North America, said.

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