Sorry—not true. Consumer confidence is down and no outcome based gov’t report or poll or eftist university analysis can change that. When I asked for specifics I meant mundane real life things like consumer spending, consumer saving, house starts, new machine orders, factory production increases, shipping increases, unemployment reduction etc. All these real life indicators are down. Hell Onada just killed 20,000 Canada to Louisiana pipeline jobs. And there are over 20,000 pipeline jobs in Alaska awaiting EPA approval. Oh, and lets not forget the Boeing plant near Charleston, SC, Onada is taking to court because SC is a right to work state. Several hundred jobs at stake there.
Don’t know about you, but I don’t see any ray of sunshine in any of that.
“Consumer confidence is up for the 3rd straight month...”
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Oh really? Below are reported numbers from Aug thru Oct which is the latest available.
US consumer confidence for October unexpectedly dropped to its lowest level since 2009, when the index reached 26.9 points, San Francisco Chronicle reported.
According to the survey conducted by New York-based private research group, The Conference Board, the US consumer confidence index for October stood at 39.8, down from 46.4 in September.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/206610.html
snip
Consumer Edge says U.S. confidence hits new low
Reuters
“...The firm’s Consumer Economic Index is now at 45.4, down 10 percentage points from July and down 1.5 points from the 46.9 level it reported on August 10.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/08/30/usa-economy-idUSN1E77T0DO20110830
snip (and this from Huffington)
Consumer Confidence Hits Record Non-Recession Low: Survey
In the latest indicator of an unusually weak recovery, the Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index hit an all-time non-recession low in September, according to figures released Wednesday.
The index also comes close to lows seen during the recession in 2008 and 2009, which, with consumer spending accounting for roughly 70 percent of the economy, signals the recovery could remain weak for some time.
Compared to even recessions themselves, the current mood of Americans is historically low, remaining well below the average of the past five recessions combined, going back to 1980, according to Advisor Perspectives.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/10/26/consumer-confidence-record-non-recession-low_n_1032714.html