Posted on 01/29/2013 7:28:01 AM PST by John W
FXstreet.com (Barcelona) - The most awaited piece of data for today surprised investors negatively, as Consumer Confidence in the US fell from 65.1 to 58.6 in January. Actual data came in much lower than the 64.0 expected.
“Hopey Changey” FAIL Alert!!!
Surprised?! Are you kidding me? I’m freaking shocked that consumer confidence is as high as it is. Employers laying off left and right, gas is up, food is up, wages are cut, and taxes are going up. Now, how can anyone with an IQ above 20 have confidence in what is going on?
That’s why I bailed out of the market, (except for my 401k). It’s a rigged game that reacts to things the average person doesn’t know about.
/sarc
My brother and I play “Look at the empty store fronts” whenever we go out (which isn’t often anymore). It’s getting much easier.
And of course the market is going up on this news.
No hiring, government raising taxes over and over, more government regulation, more fines, more government intrusion, instead of cutting back, the government spends more and more and demands more and more taxes...
Confidence?
What a joke...
“Im freaking shocked that consumer confidence is as high as it is.”
Likewise with me.
The way I figure it is either the numbers are cooked or the only people surveyed are those who are looking forward to the type of America the elites are ramming down our throat.
It seems as if the “little guy” is not too keen on paying higher taxes, even if it was a gimmick by not funding social insecurity.
Those that have confidence, work for...you guessed it, the government.
They have all their goodies paid for, it’s rare they ever get fired, they get more time off than any of those in the public sector, they have their little parties on our dime, they get free healthcare, their retirement plans are as good as it gets.
So yes, they ARE confident!
Yoo-hoo, Republicans... wake up. This is what you need to focus people’s attention on- not chasing after the illegal immigration stick because Obama yells “fetch”...
The country is completely bankrupt and has no line of sight on paying back the money it owes...
The fools in Congress just increased the debt limit to ensure the problem gets worse...
People’s paychecks are being reduced by Obama’s taxes...
Healthcare costs are skyrocketing due to Obamacare (mine increased 65%)...
Gas and food prices continue to climb...
The number of people on welfare continues to climb, repeatedly setting all time highs...
What possibly could be wrong with this picture?
Gay-C Penney just announced they are laying off front receptionists at their hair salons. That’s 1,000 gone. I’m sure their having “confidence” about now.
The Biggest Question About Today's Dive In Consumer Confidence
Joe Weisenthal and Matthew Boesler
Jan. 29, 2013, 11:01 AM
Consumer confidence declined to 58.6 from 66.7 in December.
That was well below expectations.
So, the question is simple.
What caused it?
Was it the fact that the payroll tax jumped, and people were reacting to their new, lower take-home pay?
Or was it about DC uncertainty?
Nomura writes:
While the cutoff date of the January survey was January 17, the political agreement on the fiscal cliff did not help consumer sentiment improve. Because we think that many households still have not fully realized the impact of the expiration of the payroll tax holiday as yet, there is the possibility that consumer confidence could decline further in the coming months. The Conference Board said The increase in the payroll tax has undoubtedly dampened consumers spirits and it may take a while for confidence to rebound and consumers to recover from their initial paycheck shock.
Here's a chart which shows the dive.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/the-biggest-question-about-todays-dive-in-consumer-confidence-2013-1#ixzz2JOIFTsc7
Down here in the Retail Trenches, it’s pretty obvious that people are keeping their purses and wallets snapped shut and only buying the essentials.
Good news for my seed company, though. People are growing more of their own food than ever before! :)
That is surprising and unexpected. With Obama entrenched in our White House for another four years, I would have guessed that this index (benchmark at 100 in an average economy) would have shot up. An index of 58.6 is shockingly terrible with the "Smartest Man in the World" focused on what he can do to our economy. It's almost like people are hunkering down to withstand an all-out socialist assault on their rights instead of opening up to enjoy a free party with Iced Tea, Skittles, and Birth Control for all.
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