Michigan Consumer Sentiment Falls a Point

The University of Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index preliminary report for March came in at 74.3, down a point from the February final read of 75.3. Today's number was below the Briefing.com's consensus forecast of 75.8 and Briefing.com's more optimistic 76.5.

See the chart below for a long-term perspective on this widely watched index. Because the sentiment index has trended upward since its inception in 1978, I've added a linear regression to help understand the pattern of reversion to the trend. I've also highlighted recessions and included real GDP to help evaluate the correlation between the Michigan Consumer Sentiment Index and the broader economy.

To put today's report into the larger historical context since its beginning in 1978, consumer sentiment is about 13% below the average reading (arithmetic mean), 12% below the geometric mean, and 13% below the regression line on the chart above. The current index level is at the 24.3 percentile of the 411 monthly data points in this series.

The Michigan average since its inception is 85.5. During non-recessionary years the average is 88.1. The average during the five recessions is 69.3. So the March preliminary sentiment number of 74.3 keeps us above the recession average but well below the average for non-recessionary periods.

The indicator can be somewhat volatile. For a visual sense of the volatility here is a chart with the monthly data and a three-month moving average.

For the sake of comparison here is a chart of the Conference Board's Consumer Confidence Index (monthly update here). The Conference Board Index is the more volatile of the two, but the broad pattern and general trends are remarkably similar to the Michigan Index.

And finally, the prevailing mood of the Michigan survey is also similar to the mood of small business owners, as captured by the NFIB Business Optimism Index (monthly update here).

The trend in sentiment since the Financial Crisis lows had been one of slow improvement, but it topped out in February of last year at 77.5 and plunged to an interim low of 55.7 in August. The steady rise since the August trough is encouraging. However, in the larger historical context, as a quick look at the first chart above illustrates, the March number from the Michigan survey remains at a level commonly associated with recessions.