University Michigan Sentiment Surprises Much Higher

The data from the Chicago Purchasing Managers Index was all heading the wrong way, but don’t bother telling that to the survey results from the University of Michigan on Consumer Sentiment.  Maybe this coincides with the higher spending figures seen this morning.  Maybe it is even being bolstered by the number of hot IPOs opening at a premium, or not.

The month-end data from March shows that the Reuters/University of Michigan’s consumer sentiment index rose handily to 76.2 against a Bloomberg consensus estimate of 75.0 and versus the preliminary reading of 74.3.

The prior data was indicating that sentiment fell down 1.0 point in preliminary March data to 74.3 from the final reading for February.  The components initially appeared to be mixed but the revised and expanded data showed gains instead.

JON C. OGG