Economics

U.S. Consumer Sentiment Exceeds Forecasts on Income Optimism

Shoppers walk through the Menlo Park Mall in Edison, New Jersey, U.S., on Friday, Nov. 25, 2016. As Black Friday ushers in the year-end shopping rush, chains are touting larger price cuts than in 2015 -- a gamble that maintaining market share is worth squeezing margins.Photographer: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg

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By Carlyann Edwards

March 15, 2019 at 2:00 PM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

U.S. consumer sentiment rose by more thanexpected as optimism picked up for incomes and the economy,suggesting support for growth in coming months.

The University of Michigan’s preliminary March sentiment indexadvanced to 97.8, the highest this year, compared with themedian forecast of 95.6 in a Bloomberg survey of economists,according to a report Friday. The measure of current conditionsincreased while the expectations gauge rose to the highest sinceOctober.