Univ of Michigan Confidence rises modestly in August

The final University of Michigan consumer confidence measure rose a point to 63 from the preliminary 62 estimate, as lower oil prices have helped the index recover from a low of 56.4 in June, and 61.7in July. Last year, the index averaged 85.6, so sentiment remains depressed. Both current conditions and the future outlook rose in the final revision, with current economic conditions coming in at 71 (vs 69.3), but below July's reading of 73.1, and the economic outlook rose to 57.9, from the preliminary estimate of 56.8. For comparison, the economic outlook was at 49.2, when the index bottomed in June, while the current conditions was at 67.6. Inflation expectations held steady at their preliminary August readings of 4.8% for 1-year ahead ,and 3.2% for 5-year ahead. These readings compare to May's high readings of 5.2% and 3.4%.