Consumer confidence in the US rose to a five-month high in July as consumers' outlook improved and gasoline prices remained below wartime highs. According to a survey released by the University of Michigan on Friday, the final value of the consumer confidence index rose to 55.2 in July. This is higher than the initial value of 54.4. The survey was conducted from June 23 to July 27. During this period, gasoline prices fell to their lowest level since March, then the situation in the Middle East became tense again, and gasoline prices rose again. “Consumers are still mainly concerned about immediate economic issues such as purchasing power, while political or military developments are still secondary,” Joanne Hsu, head of the investigation, said in a statement. “Despite recent improvements in confidence, consumer confidence is still 11% lower than a year ago, reflecting their still pessimistic view of the economy as a whole.” Although high prices are still putting pressure on residents, data released earlier this week showed that consumer spending remains resilient. The report released on Friday also showed that the index for measuring the popularity of durable goods purchases rose to the highest level since October last year. Current indicators and expected indicators have both improved compared to a month ago. The confidence of respondents of all incomes, ages, education levels, and political positions all increased. Views on the long-term economic situation rose to the highest level in a year. Consumers expect prices to rise by 4.2% over the next year, down from June. They also expect prices to rise at an annual rate of 3.3% over the next 5 to 10 years, the same as in June. According to the report, artificial intelligence has become a “prominent” factor for consumer concerns. Hsu said that the interviewees' overall evaluation of AI was negative, but others also mentioned that AI can help increase productivity, but it may have a negative impact on the job market.

Consumer confidence in the US rose to a five-month high in July as consumers' outlook improved and gasoline prices remained below wartime highs. According to a survey released by the University of Michigan on Friday, the final value of the consumer confidence index rose to 55.2 in July. This is higher than the initial value of 54.4. The survey was conducted from June 23 to July 27. During this period, gasoline prices fell to their lowest level since March, then the situation in the Middle East became tense again, and gasoline prices rose again. “Consumers are still mainly concerned about immediate economic issues such as purchasing power, while political or military developments are still secondary,” Joanne Hsu, head of the investigation, said in a statement. “Despite recent improvements in confidence, consumer confidence is still 11% lower than a year ago, reflecting their still pessimistic view of the economy as a whole.” Although high prices are still putting pressure on residents, data released earlier this week showed that consumer spending remains resilient. The report released on Friday also showed that the index for measuring the popularity of durable goods purchases rose to the highest level since October last year. Current indicators and expected indicators have both improved compared to a month ago. The confidence of respondents of all incomes, ages, education levels, and political positions all increased. Views on the long-term economic situation rose to the highest level in a year. Consumers expect prices to rise by 4.2% over the next year, down from June. They also expect prices to rise at an annual rate of 3.3% over the next 5 to 10 years, the same as in June. According to the report, artificial intelligence has become a “prominent” factor for consumer concerns. Hsu said that the interviewees' overall evaluation of AI was negative, but others also mentioned that AI can help increase productivity, but it may have a negative impact on the job market.