Consumers Still Spending
by Paul Carton | July 7, 2009 2:26 am
The signs of improvement reported in our April consumer survey have continued to gain momentum, according to ChangeWave’s latest survey of 2,729 consumers.
The May 5-11 survey shows that while consumer spending remains low by historical standards, we’ve witnessed the most sustained improvement over the past 60 days that we’ve seen in more than 3 years.
We note that coming out of a recession is usually far bumpier than going into one, so while it’s encouraging that the worst appears over it is premature to say that we’re entirely out of the woods yet.
One-in-five U.S. respondents (21%) now say they’ll spend more money over the next 90 days, a big five point jump since April. Another 47% still say they’ll spend less, but that’s eight points better than previously.
The 13-point net gain going forward is the most significant improvement in consumer spending in nearly three and a half years. Moreover, the spending outlook has improved across all income categories, even among lower income households (under $50,000 per year).
Retail Store Trends
In perhaps the most encouraging sign, our latest results show positive movement for several of the big shopping retailers — including Target (TGT[1]) (up 3-pts), T.J. Maxx (TJX[2]) (+ 3), Bed, Bath and Beyond (BBBY[3]) (+2), and Macy’s (M[4]) (+2).
We also note that despite the spending uptick it’s still the big discounters — Wal-Mart (WMT[5]) and Costco (COST[6]) — that appear best positioned to outperform going forward.
In terms of online shopping, Amazon (AMZN[7]) continues to excel and remains one of the momentum leaders in our survey for the 6th consecutive month. As an example, 27% of respondents say they’ll shop at Amazon for home entertainment and computer networking products over the next 90 days – a 4-pt jump just since April.
Apple (AAPL[8]) also shows additional momentum in the home entertainment market.
Stay tuned. We’ll know more after our next consumer survey is completed in a few weeks.
- TGT: http://studio-5.financialcontent.com/investplace/quote?Symbol=tgt
- TJX: http://studio-5.financialcontent.com/investplace/quote?Symbol=tjx
- BBBY: http://studio-5.financialcontent.com/investplace/quote?Symbol=bbby
- M: http://studio-5.financialcontent.com/investplace/quote?Symbol=m
- WMT: http://studio-5.financialcontent.com/investplace/quote?Symbol=wmt
- COST: http://studio-5.financialcontent.com/investplace/quote?Symbol=cost
- AMZN: http://studio-5.financialcontent.com/investplace/quote?Symbol=amzn
- AAPL: http://studio-5.financialcontent.com/investplace/quote?Symbol=aapl
Source URL: https://investorplace.com/2009/07/consumer-spending-survey/