July US consumer confidence 121.1 vs 116.5 expected

July US consumer confidence 121.1 vs 116.5 expected

Consumer confidence data from the Conference Board

Prior was 118.9
Present situation 147.8 vs 143.9 prior
Expectations 103.3 vs 100.6
1-year inflation 4.6% vs 4.6% prior
Jobs hard-to-get 18.0 vs 18.4 prior
A rare slice of good news for the US dollar.
There has been this continuing massive divergence between sentiment surveys this year and hard data. This latest uptick shows that consumers have shrugged off the disappointment in Congress and feeling good anyway.
I’ve been skeptical of the US economy this year but at some point the tide of global growth and the wave of optimism will lead to better numbers. I think that time is fast approaching but it’s going to take much more than a consumer confidence report to make the market believe.