Snap back? US consumer confidence rises as COVID cases drop
Al JazeeraAmericans feel a bit more upbeat about the jobs market and the government passing stimulus, but serious concerns remain. United States consumer confidence increased in February, with households slightly more upbeat about the labour market amid declining new COVID-19 infections and expectations for additional money from the government to help the economy’s recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. The expectations index based on consumers’ short-term outlook for income, business and labour market conditions slipped to 90.8 from a reading of 91.2 in January. A separate report on Tuesday showed the S&P CoreLogic Case-Shiller 20-metro-area house price index soared 10.1 percent in December from a year ago, the largest gain since April 2014, after increasing 9.2 percent in November. Robust house price inflation was confirmed by a third report showing the Federal Housing Finance Agency house price index jumped 11.4 percent year-on-year in December after rising 11.1 percent in November.