U.S. Consumer Sentiment Deteriorates Slightly Less Than Initially Estimated

(RTTNews) - Consumer sentiment in the U.S. deteriorated by slightly less than initially estimated in the month of May, according to a report released by Thomson Reuters and the University of Michigan on Friday.

The report showed that the final reading on the consumer sentiment index for May came in at 81.9, reflecting a modest upward revision from the mid-month reading of 81.8.

Despite the upward revision, the index remained well below the final April reading of 84.1 and fell short of economist estimates for a reading of 82.5.

According to Reuters, survey director Richard Curtin said the main concern expressed by consumers involved dismal prospects for wage growth.

The report showed that the barometer of current economic conditions in May was downwardly revised to 94.5 from 95.1, coming in well below the 98.7 seen in April.

The gauge of consumer expectations was upwardly revised to 73.7 from 73.2 but remained down compared to 74.7 in the previous month.

With regard to inflation, one-year inflation expectation rose to 3.3 percent in May from 3.2 percent in April, while the five-to-ten-year inflation outlook edged down to 2.8 percent from 2.9 percent.