Sina US Stock News Bloomberg reports in the early morning of the 20th, Beijing time, that the Bloomberg Consumer Comfort Index released on Thursday showed that Americans were more pessimistic about the economic trend in October, even though the consumer confidence index had risen in the last week.

Consumer Comfort Index (week ending October 15)

Bloomberg's consumer comfort index rose from 49.5 to 51.1. It rose for the first time in three weeks, and the monthly economic expectations index for October fell from 51.5 to a three-month low of 47.5. The current economic condition index jumped from 51.6 to 53.6, and the shopping sentiment index rose from 40.8 to 41.9; personal financial indicators rose from 56 to 57.8

Key points of the data

The decline in monthly economic expectations may reflect the delay in dissipating the effects of Hurricane Harvey. The hurricane disrupted production at Texas refineries, causing gasoline prices to rise, which remained above pre-hurricane levels even after a recent decline.

According to the report, 29% of respondents said the economy improved in October, down from 31% last month. Meanwhile, falling gasoline prices and rising stock markets, combined with the post-storm economic rebound, may support weekly increases in consumer comfort indices. This figure is still below the 16-year high reached in August.