New Spending Confidence Index Launches

In the US, Prosper Insights & Analytics has partnered with MacroSavvy to develop an index of consumer confidence and sentiment called the Spending Confidence Index, which integrates psychological and behavioral factors affecting spending.

The new index incorporates data from direct questions about personal consumption expectations across nineteen sub-categories, fielded to more than 700,000 consumers over the past nine years. In addition to tracking underlying trends in existing measures of consumer sentiment, the index was designed to identify high and low points and periods of confidence.

Data for the nineteen sub-categories is also grouped to produce indices for consumables vs. discretionary goods, and for six other categories: apparel and shoes; drugs; health and beauty care; electronics; food and groceries; homegoods; and leisure goods.

Frank Badillo (pictured), MacroSavvy's Director of Research, comments: 'The Spending Confidence Index represents a significant step forward. It is a much stronger measure of confidence that is not hampered by month-to-month volatility, which limits the usefulness of other existing measures of confidence'.

Web sites: www.prosperdiscovery.com and www.macrosavvy.com .