New York, NY, June 2--Consumers' attitudes about the state of the U.S. economy improved at the end of May compared with April, according to a report released Friday.
The University of Michigan said its full-month index on consumer sentiment for May rose to 92.1, versus the 86.0 seen in April, those who had seen the report said. It is released only to subscribers.
But the final May reading is a step back from the 93.2 seen in the preliminary consumer-sentiment index released in the middle of the month. The final May reading fell short of the 93.0 expected by economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires.
The University of Michigan's index of current conditions stood at 93.2, versus the 94.1 seen in the middle of the month and the 96.4 reported for April.
Meanwhile, the expectations index for May moved to 91.4, from 92.7 in the preliminary estimate and 79.3 in the April index.
The consumer sentiment report comes at an important point in the economy. Federal Reserve officials, including Chairman Alan Greenspan in an appearance before Congress last week, have argued that economic growth will improve later this year as the uncertainties created by the Iraq war finally wash out of the data.
The Conference Board's more comprehensive survey of consumer confidence has shown solid increases in the last couple of months, as households' views on the outlook have improved.
But at the same time, consumers have cut back on their assessment of current economic conditions, amid a steady drumbeat of weak economic news in April.
Consumer confidence gauges issued by the University of Michigan and the Conference Board aren't reliable predictors of consumer spending levels. Greenspan has said repeatedly he is more interested in actual spending, rather than what people say they'll do.
The Michigan survey is based on a telephone poll of around 250 respondents, and is valued for its quick read on where sentiment stands. The Conference Board's consumer confidence index is based on a mail-in survey of 5,000 households, and is more focused on labor-market conditions.
