Nebraska Business and Consumer Confidence Indexes: February 3, 2017

Both business and consumer confidence improved in Nebraska in January 2017, but the gap between the two measures remained. The Consumer Confidence Index – Nebraska (CCI-N) stood at 89.2 during January, well below the neutral value of 100. The outlook of Nebraska businesses, by contrast, was positive. The Business Confidence Index – Nebraska (CCI-N) stood at 107.8 in January, well above the neutral value. Both values were somewhat higher than in December 2016. When asked about the most important issue facing their business, customer demand was mentioned by 30 percent of business respondents, labor availability and quality by 22 percent of respondents and government regulation by 11 percent. Households reported a variety of financial concerns with 30 percent reporting that their primary financial concerns relate to paying off debt or savings and 47 choosing the cost of living including health care costs, taxes, major expenses (furniture, appliances, automobiles or college tuition) and the general cost of living