Upstate’s overall-sentiment index of 72 is a combination of the current-sentiment and future-sentiment components. Upstate’s current-sentiment index of 80.7 is up 8.3 points from December, while the future-sentiment level fell 0.5 points to 66.4, according to the SRI data.
The Upstate figure was 5.5 points below the statewide consumer-sentiment level of 77.5, which was up 3.9 points from December and at its highest level since last June, SRI said.
New York’s consumer-sentiment index was 3.7 points lower than the January figure for the entire nation of 81.2, which was down 1.3 points from December, as measured by the University of Michigan’s consumer-sentiment index.
It is “somewhat” surprising that the numbers “were good as they were,” Douglas Lonnstrom, professor of statistics and finance at Siena College and SRI founding director, says.
He believes 2013 turned out to be a “better year” than most people had expected and consumers were “feeling pretty good” heading into 2014.
Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com