U.S. consumer confidence rose for a
second month in May as the economy added jobs, according to a
survey of economists.
The Conference Board’s sentiment gauge will rise to 94 this
month, the highest since January, compared with 92.9 in April,
according to the median forecast of 56 economists surveyed by
Bloomberg News. The index averaged 103 during the record
expansion from 1991-2001.
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The 288,000 April gain in payrolls capped the biggest two-
month increase in four years, while private manufacturing surveys
showed employment was improving this month. More hiring may help
consumers overcome record gasoline prices, rising interest rates
and concerns about the U.S. involvement in Iraq and give spending
a boost.
?The consumer will continue to spend,? said Tim Rogers,
chief economist at Briefing.com in Boston. ?Increasing
employment and increasing incomes will fill in for the negative
influences on the consumer.?
Job gains last month followed a jump of 337,000 in March
that was higher than previously reported, the Labor Department
reported earlier this month. The back-to-back increase was the
biggest since March-April 2000.
Bloomberg News
