Housing, Consumer Confidence -- December 20, 2023

Locator: 46357ECON.

Think:

• "area under the curve"
• MMF chart
• nice run in equities, 2023
• bonuses for folks coming back to work
• salaries for AI employees
• UAW contract
• foreign investment
• folks moving out of California to Texas, Idaho
• opportunity to re-finance

Link here.

Sales of previously owned homes unexpectedly inched up in November, 2023, snapping a five-month slump and ending a 13-year low. Don’t call it a rebound just yet, says one industry economist. 

Existing homes in November were sold at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 3.82 million, up 0.8% from the prior month. 

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Consumer Confidence Surges

Americans are wrapping up 2023 feeling better about the economy, with consumer confidence surging past expectations.

The Conference Board’s consumer confidence index jumped to 110.7 in December from November’s downwardly revised 101 reading. 

Economists were forecasting it would tick up to 104.5.

The outlook for the next six months also improved, with the expectations index, which measures the short-term outlook for the economy, rising to 85.6 from 77.4. Americans are also more optimistic that the economy will avoid a recession within the next year.