(Bloomberg) -- Americans' confidence eased from a 16-year high last week, though relatively high optimism should continue to support spending, according to Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index figures released Thursday.
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Key Takeaways
Even with the decline, sentiment has been strong in 2017, with the best yearly average since 2001. That indicates consumer spending -- which accounts for 70 percent of the economy -- is likely to remain steady. Most of last week's drop came from worsening views on the buying climate, which may be the result of rising gasoline prices after Hurricane Harvey inundated Houston and other parts of the Gulf Coast. Views continued to diverge along political lines, with the partisan gap favoring Republicans over Democrats by 24.6 points, the biggest difference since the final months of George W. Bush's presidency.
Other Details
- Comfort index fell in the Midwest and Northeast; rose in the West
- Measure dropped to five-week low for those with a high school degree or less, while it rose slightly to a 16-year high among college-educated Americans
- Sentiment among part-time workers rose to a five-week high of 49.9, while it fell among full-time workers and the unemployed
- Comfort declined for respondents age 35 and older, rose among younger people
To contact the reporter on this story: Agnel Philip in Washington at aphilip19@bloomberg.net.
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Brendan Murray at brmurray@bloomberg.net, Scott Lanman, Alister Bull
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