Consumer sentiment toward the overall economy and technology spending both increased in April, according to the Consumer Technology Association (CTA)™ Indexes.

Overall Economy
The CTA Index of Consumer Expectations (ICE), measuring consumer sentiment about the U.S. economy as a whole, increased in April by 3.1 points to reach 185.2 – more than 10 points higher on a year-over-year basis.

“Consumers are showing renewed optimism when it comes to their own jobs and their financial well-being,” said Shawn DuBravac, Ph.D., chief economist, CTA. “Unemployment and other measures of employment weakness continue to decline. Measures of wages growth are trending higher after a long period of sluggish growth. However, I do see some potential warning signs worth watching – some respondents appear to be losing faith in the longer-term buoyancy of the economy.”

Technology Spending
The CTA Index of Consumer Technology Expectations (ICTE), which measures consumer expectations about technology spending, increased 1.6 points in April to 89.5 – 2.4 percentage points above its April 2016 level.  

“Perceived strength in the overall economy and, specifically, perceived strength in income growth and labor market stability are likely supporting sentiment around tech spending,” said DuBravac “Consumers are taking those positive economic signs as indication that it could be a good time to make purchases. Growth in durable goods spending thus far this year is broadly consistent with this behavior.”

The CTA Indexes are updated on a monthly basis through consumer surveys. New data is released on the fourth Tuesday of each month. Find current and past indexes, charts and methodology on CTA Indexes.