Credit : The White House's X
US consumer confidence rose sharply in October 2026, the White House said on Tuesday, October 27, pointing to the latest monthly survey from The Conference Board.
In a post on X, the White House wrote: “U.S. consumer confidence rises sharply in October.” The post carried a graphic of President Donald Trump with a headline from The Hill reading “Consumer sentiment increased in October: Conference Board.”
The Conference Board said its Consumer Confidence Index rose by 7.5 points to 91.7 in October, up from 84.2 in September, a figure that was slightly revised upwards. The reading brought confidence back to its June level.
The Present Situation Index, which is based on consumers’ assessment of current business and labour market conditions, increased by 8.6 points to 120.4. The Expectations Index, which tracks the short-term outlook for income, business and jobs, recovered by 6.9 points to 72.6, only partially reversing three consecutive monthly declines.
“Consumer confidence advanced in October, driven primarily by improved perceptions of current and expected business conditions,” said Fergus McCormick, senior economist for global indicators at The Conference Board. “The recovery was in line with retail gasoline prices easing from September to October.”
The survey found that 21.4 per cent of consumers described business conditions as “good”, up from 18.8 per cent in September, while 17.8 per cent said conditions were “bad”, down from 20.0 per cent. The share saying jobs were “plentiful” rose to 26.7 per cent from 24.3 per cent, while 21.4 per cent said jobs were “hard to get”, unchanged from the previous month.
Looking ahead, 17.7 per cent of consumers expected business conditions to improve over the next six months, up from 16.5 per cent, while those expecting conditions to worsen fell to 20.7 per cent from 25.2 per cent. Expectations for household income also improved.
The Conference Board said the gap between consumers saying jobs were “plentiful” and those saying they were “hard to get” improved by 2.4 percentage points to plus 5.3 per cent. Net expectations for household income over the next six months rose by 3.5 points to plus 6.7 per cent, suggesting consumers still expect their earnings to grow. The AP noted that, although petrol prices eased modestly in October, it remained much more expensive to fill up a tank than at the same time last year.
The October figure beat forecasts. Economists polled by Reuters had expected the index to come in at 81, following a previously reported September reading of 81.9. The Associated Press noted that September’s reading had been the lowest in the survey since April 2014.
However, The Conference Board cautioned that confidence remained on a long-term downward trend. “Consumers planned less spending on services and durable goods over the next six months,” McCormick said. “This likely reflected higher price levels and persistent inflation, which eroded consumers’ purchasing power.” He added that written responses showed consumers continued to express frustration with rising costs, including food, groceries and fuel.
The survey, conducted online for The Conference Board by Toluna, covered the period from October 1 to October 21. The AP reported that Americans remained unsettled by the economy after five years of elevated inflation, which could pose a risk to President Trump and the Republicans in the upcoming midterm elections.
Credit : The White House’s X
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