The HPS-CivicScience Economic Sentiment Index (“ESI”) is a “living” index that measures U.S. adults’ expectations for the economy going forward, as well as their feelings about current conditions for major purchases. The primary goal of the Index is to accurately measure movements in overall national economic sentiment and to provide a more sophisticated alternative to existing economic sentiment indices. Unlike other prominent indices that release consumer sentiment estimates infrequently, the HPS-CivicScience Index is updated in real time as responses are collected continuously every hour, every day. Large-scale cross-tabulation of survey responses and consumer attributes enable more granular analyses than are currently possible through prevailing measures.

Excerpt From the Latest Reading: 

The drop in the overall index was fueled by declines in consumer sentiment toward four out of the ESI’s five indicators. Confidence in the broader U.S. economy fell 2.4 points, down from 55.4 to 53.0, marking the largest decline in any indicator during the reading. Additionally, confidence in personal finances also fell by 1.9 points to 67.0, the lowest reading since November 2017. Consumer confidence in the U.S. housing market dropped to 1.7 points, falling to 49.0 points. Sentiment toward making a major purchase also declined, ending the reading 0.9 points down at 53.0. Consumer confidence in the labor market was the only indicator to increase, jumping 0.5 points to 49.4.

The declines in the indicators come amidst volatility in U.S. markets, including one day — Friday, February 9 — that saw the Dow Jones Industrial Average swing more than 1,000 points. During the week of trading concluding on February 9, U.S. markets saw as much as $3 trillion in value wiped out.

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