U.S. Consumer Sentiment Unexpectedly Deteriorates In April

(RTTNews) - Consumer sentiment in the U.S. has unexpectedly deteriorated in the month of April, the University of Michigan revealed in a report on Friday.

The report said the preliminary reading on the consumer sentiment index for April came in at 89.7 compared to the final March reading of 91.0.

The modest decrease came as a surprise to economists, who had expected the consumer sentiment index to inch up to 92.0.

Richard Curtin, the survey's chief economist, said, "Consumer confidence continued its slow overall decline in early April, marking the fourth consecutive monthly decline."

"Consumers reported a slowdown in expected wage gains, weakening inflation-adjusted income expectations, and growing concerns that slowing economic growth would reduce the pace of job creation," he added.

The report said the current economic conditions index edged down to 105.4 in April from 105.6 in March, while the index of consumer expectations dropped to 79.6 from 81.5.

On the inflation front, the one-year inflation outlook held at 2.7 percent, but five-year inflation expectations dropped to 2.5 percent from 2.7 percent.