Highlights
February has been a very strong month for the jobs market, indicated by sizable declines in jobless claims and by today's consumer confidence report that shows a big decline in those describing jobs as hard to get, down to 38.7 percent vs January's 43.3 percent. February is the first reading below 40 percent since November 2008. The strength in job activity is reflected in new optimism for income prospects with optimists, at 15.4 percent, once again ahead of pessimists which total a modest 12.7 percent.

Boosted by these two components, the headline composite index of the report jumped more than nine points to 70.8. This is far above the 40.9 reading in October though it's still below the year-ago reading of 72.0. The year-ago comparison is a reminder that the recovery is still recovering from mid-2011's soft spot.

Another plus, as seen in last week's bi-monthly consumer sentiment report, is that rising gas prices have yet to worry consumers whose inflation expectations are unchanged at plus 5.5 percent. The stock market isn't getting much lift from today's report which however should help to offset disappointment over the steep decline in durable goods orders.

Market Consensus before announcement
The Conference Board's consumer confidence index dipped in January to 61.1 from December's revised 64.8. The report's present situation component fell more than 8 points to 38.4 in what nearly erases December's strong showing. The expectations component also slipped but just barely, to 76.2 versus 77.0 in December.

2012 Release Schedule

Released On: 1/31 2/28 3/27 4/24 5/29 6/26 7/31 8/28 9/25 11/1 11/27 12/27 Release For: Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec