Consumer sentiment in the U.S. has unexpectedly deteriorated in the month of June, according to a report released by Thomson Reuters and the University of Michigan on Friday, with the consumer sentiment index pulling back off a nearly six-year high.
The report showed that the preliminary reading on the consumer sentiment index for June came in at 82.7, down from the final May reading of 84.5, which was the highest since July of 2007.
The decrease by the consumer sentiment index came as a surprise to economists, who had expected the index to come in unchanged compared to the previous month.
The unexpected decrease by the index reflected a significant deterioration in consumers' assessment of current economic conditions.
The report showed that the barometer of current conditions fell to 92.1 in June from 98.0 in May, partly offsetting the 8.1 point jump seen in the previous month.
Meanwhile, the drop by the current conditions index was partly offset by a continued improvement in consumer expectations.
The expectations index edged up to 76.7 in June from 75.8 in May, advancing further above the reading of 67.8 recorded in April. With the increase, the index reached a seven-month high.
Jennifer Lee, senior economist at BMO Capital, said, "This is somewhat disappointing news on consumer confidence, but it is encouraging that expectations have not been overwhelmed by current concerns."
On the inflation front, one-year inflation expectations rose to 3.2 percent in June from 3.1 percent in May, while the five-to-ten-year inflation outlook climbed to 3 percent from 2.9 percent.
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