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Government Shutdown, Debt Ceiling Debate Harm Consumer Confidence
November 3, 2013
The state’s consumer confidence fell sharply in October, exacerbated by the federal shutdown and talks of another debt ceiling debate in Congress, according to a University of Florida report.
On a scale that ranges from 2 to 150, confidence among Floridians went down seven points from September to a 71, the lowest reading since Dec. 2011.The 2011 marks were heavily impacted by a debt ceiling showdown that summer.
“Confidence among Floridians was already declining prior to any indication of a shutdown and debt ceiling debate,” Chris McCarty, director of UF’s Survey Research Center in the Bureau of Economic and Business Research, said in a release. “However, there is no doubt that confidence in September took a hit as we replayed the events of August 2011, the last time the U.S. was precariously close to a default.”
Because of the federal shutdown, the release of the state’s jobless figures for September has been delayed until Nov. 22. The university had to rely on national unemployment figures for its consumer confidence calculations. The U.S. unemployment rate was 7.2 percent in September, down from 7.3 percent in August.
“While a decline is good it appears that job creation was tepid, particularly in leisure and hospitality, an important employment category for Florida,” the report noted.
Comments
3 Responses to “Government Shutdown, Debt Ceiling Debate Harm Consumer Confidence”
Actually, it is more like $17,000,000,000,000 ( $17 trillion or $17,000 billion or $17 million million).
It’s easy to get lost in big numbers
A debt ceiling should inspire confidence in people as unlimited debt is no formula for a fiscally sound nation.
The snow ball is coming down the mountain and it is $17,000,000,000.00 big, what more do you want?
Pray for a debt ceiling and a cap on printing money.
And if you are retired you got a few dollars increase in SSI, which won’t even help with the groceries. How many people in Florida are retired? Many jobs in this area are only part time and that is becoming true across America. Then there is Obamacare, with it’s uncertainty and high costs to people. Why would there be ANY consumer confidence?