Unflappable Consumer Confidence
When you’re stuck guessing where the economy might go in the next six months, send out a survey! That’s exactly what the Conference Board, a non-profit research organization, did across US consumers. The results are conclusive; it’s party time!
Investors may be biting their nails, but consumers couldn’t be more worry-free! Blissfully unaware of obscure inverted yield curves and congested global trade, shoppers are bright-eyed and bushy-tailed as unemployment scrapes historic lows. This happy-go-lucky attitude comes as a surprise to market watchers, who expected the public to fear big picture, geopolitical turmoil.
To understand those concerns, it pays to think about how costs are caught in our companies like a filter. Investors watch their chosen market picks tally up revenue on the top-line, hoping as much of it stays in-tact as possible by the time it reaches the bottom-line. Despite customer revenue remaining strong, border costs have risen along with the trade war tensions recently. That’s meant only a small trickle of take-home profit has made it into investors pockets!
Regardless, this survey brings good news and may cause some investors to think twice before following the flock into safe, fixed income bonds. At the end of the day, the customer pays the wages, the customer creates the profit, and the customer is the king. The longest bull run in American history may still have legs if the consumer is all good vibes. Is confidence alone enough to keep customers spending? Investors better hope so!
