The improvement is welcome news to retailers heading into the holiday shopping season, suggesting that consumers won’t be so conservative when the search the malls for that perfect gift.
Many retailers are still offering up excellent bargains in order to attract recession-scarred shoppers, but the second-monthly increase in consumer confidence is signaling that some may go beyond sale items, which should help fatten profit margins.
Consumer confidence remains at a relatively low level and is still stuck in the narrow range it has been in for over a year. That's not surprising given the summer slowdown and an unemployment rate that remains stubbornly above 9%.
However, the job market is slowly starting to improve, while weekly jobless claims fell to the lowest level since June 2008 last week. Moreover, the Conference Board’s survey revealed that most consumers are feeling a little better about what’s happening to the labor market, which is aiding sentiment and appears set to support economic growth.
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