Consumers Feeling More Upbeat About U.S. Economy

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Ty Wright/Bloomberg via Getty Images U.S. consumer sentiment rose in November as wealthier Americans' outlook on the economy improved, a survey released Wednesday showed. The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan's final reading on the overall index on consumer sentiment measured 75.1 for November, up from a final reading of 73.2 in October and above the median forecast of 73.5 among economists polled by Reuters. "While rising stock prices and low interest rates will favor holiday sales of upper-end consumers, lower income households were still more concerned about job gains," survey director Richard Curtin said in a statement. The preliminary November reading of the overall index was reported at 72.0 earlier this month. The survey's barometer of current economic conditions fell to 88.0 in November from 89.9 in October. The final figure was higher than the preliminary November reading of 87.2 but came in below a forecast of 89.0. The survey's gauge of consumer expectations rose to 66.8 from 62.5 in October, slightly above an expected 66.2. The one-year inflation expectation fell to 2.9 percent from 3.1 percent, while the survey's five-to-10-year inflation outlook stood at 2.9 percent, unchanged from last month.