The final reading for the February Reuters/Michigan index of consumer
sentiment came in at 67.0 compared to the flash reading of 66.4 and the January
final reading of 64.9. That was the
highest reading since January 2022 (67.2).
Economists had expected the indicator to be unrevised at 66.4.
The details of the latest Surveys of Consumers of the University of
Michigan showed that the index of current economic conditions increased 3.4 percent
m-o-m 70.7 this month, while the index of consumer expectations rose 3.2
percent m-o-m at 64.7.
The report also revealed that the estimates of
year-ahead expected inflation increased from 3.9 percent in January to 4.1
percent in February versus the preliminary reading of 4.2 percent. That was the
first rise after three months of declines. Meanwhile, the 5-year
inflation expectations remained unchanged at 2.9 percent for the third straight month, in line with the preliminary estimate.