Forty-one percent of consumers are very or somewhat comfortable spending money on discretionary purchases.
That’s according to the Numerator Consumer Sentiment Tracker for May, which captures more than 6,000 responses a month and provides a comprehensive monthly view of consumer confidence, spending & saving considerations and future financial outlook.
The May Consumer Confidence Score was 56.8 (-0.1 vs. April), which is an average of how consumers feel about the job market, their household finances, and their spending comfort levels.
“Consumer confidence held steady in May, with consistent levels of comfort across the board,” Numerator said.
The May Financial Outlook Score was 50.3 (-0.2), indicating that consumers feel neutral about their household finances. Thinking about one year from now, 24% think their finances will be better than they are now, 52% think they’ll be the same, and 23% think they’ll be worse. Black consumers and Gen Z consumers are the most optimistic about their financial situations.
Other findings from the May report are below.
•To save money, consumers are shopping for items on sale (45.5%), using coupons/discount codes (44.7%) and cooking at home (43.9%).
•With the warmer weather, consumers are looking to get out of the house or fix up the house. 30.3% plan to use spare cash to travel or go on vacation, and 22.8% plan to make home repairs/improvements.
•Forty-percent of consumers think it’s very or somewhat easy to find employment in the current job market. Meanwhile, 27% think it’s somewhat or very difficult.
•Forty-eight percent of consumers say their household’s financial situation is currently good or very good (no change vs. April).
•Consumers with spare cash say they’re putting it in savings (38%) and paying down debts (34%).