The Conference Board released a press release regarding its latest Consumer Confidence Survey on October 23rd. The data presented in the survey shows significant variations in consumer perceptions of the US economy across different age groups, generations, political stances, and income levels.
The survey delves into an in-depth analysis of the job market differential, which is a key indicator measuring the proportion difference between consumers who believe job opportunities are “plentiful” versus those who think jobs are “hard to get.”
The job market differential is a crucial data point released by The Conference Board to gauge sentiment in the job market. It is calculated as the percentage of consumers who think jobs are “plentiful” minus the percentage who believe jobs are “hard to get.” Generally, a higher value indicates a strong job market while a lower or negative value suggests a weakening labor market where more people find it difficult to secure employment.
The latest data reveals a continuous decline in this metric in recent months, dropping to +7.8%. Among consumers, 26.9% feel that job opportunities are “plentiful” while 19.1% believe that jobs are “hard to get.” Overall, the outlook for the job market remains optimistic. However, the current differential is significantly lower than its peak of 22.2% in December 2024.
The latest data also indicates that the Baby Boomer generation (approximately 61-79 years old) continues to exhibit relatively strong performance in the current labor market with a job market differential of +14.9% in September. In comparison, Generation X (ages around 45-60) stands at +4.7%, Millennials (approximately 29-44 years old) at +3.6%, and Generation Z at only +2.1%, highlighting the increasingly challenging conditions younger job seekers face in today’s job market.
Furthermore, individuals with an annual income below $35,000 have turned negative in their outlook on the labor market in September, while those with moderate incomes ranging from $75,000 to $100,000 are the most optimistic about job opportunities.
Additionally, the latest data shows a deepening partisan divide among Americans regarding the current economic situation. The influence of political affiliation on consumer confidence has long been observed, with Republicans generally more optimistic when their party is in power, while Democrats tend to be more positive during Democratic administrations.
This gap widened further in 2025, partly due to a decline in sentiment among Independents and Democrats, especially when evaluating the “Present Situation Index” in September. The index for Republicans was 160.5 (with 1985=100 as the reference point), while Independents stood at 110.5 and Democrats at 107.9. The gap between Republican and Democratic views on the current economy increased from around 35 percentage points in April 2025 to over 50 percentage points.
Furthermore, the newly released historical time series data reflects long-term trends, including differences in economic expectations across age groups post-pandemic. Since 2021 and 2022, older adults have generally been more optimistic about the current economic situation than younger individuals, while they express greater concerns about future prospects. Conversely, young people are more optimistic about the future. This intergenerational divide is more pronounced post-COVID-19 compared to before the pandemic.
The Conference Board, established in 1916, is a US non-profit think tank and business research organization focusing on consumer confidence, employment, economic indicators, and business trends. Their Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) and Present Situation Index are widely regarded as important references for assessing the health of the US economy and the labor market.
The committee conducts a monthly Consumer Confidence Survey, which includes detailed demographic cross-tabulations and an expanded consumption intention database covering dozens of goods and services categories.