US consumer confidence dips less than expected in October

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​By Mucahithan Avcioglu

ISTANBUL (AA) - The Conference Board's US Consumer Confidence Index fell one point to 94.6 in October, according to data released Tuesday.

The figure for September was revised up to 95.6 points, while markets expected it to come in at 93.4.

The Present Situation Index, which reflects American consumers' assessments of current job and labor market conditions, increased 1.8 points to 129.3 in October.

The Expectations Index, which is consumers' short-term assessments of income, job and labor market conditions, fell 2.9 points to 71.5

"Expectations have been below the threshold of 80 that typically signals a recession ahead since February 2025," the Conference Board said in a statement.

“Consumer confidence moved sideways in October, only declining slightly from its upwardly revised September level,” said Stephanie Guichard, senior economist at the Conference Board.

She said the consumers’ view of current business conditions ticked upward, while their appraisal of current job availability improved for the first time since December 2024.

"Consumers were a bit more pessimistic about future job availability and future business conditions while optimism about future income retreated slightly," she said.

Guichard noted that prices and inflation were the topic that led consumers’ write-in responses.

Meanwhile, references to tariffs fell further this month but remained elevated, and the mentions of jobs and employment declined after rising in September.

"The write-in comments remained mostly negative overall, but less so than in previous months. References to US politics were up notably, with the ongoing government shutdown mentioned multiple times as a key concern," added Guichard.