Coming into this year, the percentage of people expecting the stock market to go up over the next 12 months was at the highest level ever been in the history of The Conference Board survey. (1/3) https://t.co/TjvrHhcvAY
Record bullishness towards the stock market has been followed by the biggest 4-month swing bearish on record: https://t.co/pq3ZMX0pkW
Consumers Sour on Stocks https://t.co/MNgIlk977f via @bespokeinvest
US consumer sentiment toward the stock market has turned increasingly pessimistic over recent months, according to multiple surveys. A University of Michigan survey found that a record 12% of Americans now see no chance of stock prices rising over the next 12 months, a figure that has tripled in the last two months. Similarly, data from The Conference Board shows a sharp increase in the percentage of consumers expecting stock prices to decline, rising from a four-year low of 19.8% to a 13-year high of 48.5% in just five months. This represents the highest level of bearish sentiment since October 2011. Over the past three months alone, the proportion of consumers anticipating a market decline jumped by 23.7%, marking a record increase in bearish sentiment. Earlier in the year, bullish sentiment had reached an all-time high in the history of The Conference Board's survey, but this optimism has since reversed dramatically, resulting in the largest four-month swing toward bearishness on record.