“U.S. consumers’ confidence hit a fresh 14-year high this month, as lower-income households reported feeling more optimistic about the economy,” Harriet Torry reports for The Wall Street Journal. “The University of Michigan on Friday said the preliminary result of its consumer-sentiment index was 102.0 in March, up from 99.7 in February. That was the highest level since January 2004, and well above the 99.0 economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal had expected.”
“The reading ‘continues what has been a strong run across a range of consumer sentiment measures,’ JPMorgan Chase economist Daniel Silver said in a note to clients, adding ‘this strength in sentiment is one of the reasons we think consumer spending will pick up soon following a soft start to the year,'” Torry reports. “Federal Reserve policy makers meet next week, March 20-21, and they are widely expected to raise rates a quarter percentage point from their current range of between 1.25% and 1.5%.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: A strong U.S. economy, especially regarding employment, disposable income gains, and consumer spending increases obviously bodes well for Apple and for everyone else. A rising tide lifts all boats!
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