by Calculated Risk on 11/11/2016 10:50:00 AM

The preliminary University of Michigan consumer sentiment index for November was at 91.6, up from 87.2 in October.

The Sentiment Index in early November erased the small October decline to climb to its highest level since mid 2016 and rise slightly above the 2016 average of 91.1. The recent gain in sentiment was driven by an improved outlook for the economy. The most striking finding in early November was that both near and long-term inflation expectations jumped to 2.7% from last month's record matching lows of 2.4%. These increases must be replicated before they can be taken to indicate a troublesome development; thus far, the data has simply repeated the March 2016 peaks. Nonetheless, it may be viewed as added justification for next month's expected interest rate hike. The expected small increase in interest rates had little impact on favorable buying attitudes, and still supports a 2.5% increase in real consumer spending during 2017. Unfortunately, the November data must be accompanied by the proviso that it was collected before the result of the Presidential election was known late Tuesday.
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