History of Consumer confidence in Timeline

By Popular Timelines Editorial Team · Updated: May 29, 2025

Consumer confidence is an economic indicator reflecting consumers' optimism about the economy and their financial well-being. High confidence typically leads to increased spending and less saving, as consumers feel secure in their financial outlook and the economy's prospects. This contrasts with periods of low consumer confidence, where individuals tend to save more and spend less due to uncertainty about the economy and their personal finances.

1966: Base Period for Index of Consumer Sentiment (ICS)

In 1966, the base period was established for the Index of Consumer Sentiment (ICS), which is aggregated from five questions regarding personal and overall financial situations, as well as attitudes toward buying major household items.

1967: The Conference Board Produced the Consumer Confidence Index (CCI)

In 1967, The Conference Board started producing the Consumer Confidence Index (CCI) to evaluate consumer confidence, financial health, and spending power in the U.S.

1980: Conference Board of Canada's Index of Consumer Confidence Began

In 1980, the Conference Board of Canada initiated its Index of Consumer Confidence, which is based on responses to four questions posed to Canadian households regarding their financial positions, employment outlook, and willingness to make major purchases.

December 1985: The ABC News Consumer Comfort Index Survey Began

In December 1985, the polling firm Langer Research Associates started the survey originally known as "The ABC News Consumer Comfort Index".

December 1985: Historical Values of all Three Indexes Starting

Starting in December 1985, the CCAI takes into account historical values of all three indexes.

1985: Benchmark Year for CCI

In 1985, the index benchmark was arbitrarily set at 100 for the Consumer Confidence Index because it was neither a peak nor a trough in the business cycle.

1992: Gallup Started Asking Component Questions Periodically

Since 1992, Gallup has periodically asked the component questions to measure Americans’ confidence in national economic conditions.

June 1995: GfK Consumer Confidence Barometer in the UK Began

Since June 1995, GfK have been conducting the Consumer Confidence Barometer in the UK.

October 2000: Gallup Started Asking Component Questions Monthly

Since October 2000, Gallup has monthly asked the component questions to measure Americans’ confidence in national economic conditions.

2004: Start of Spanish CCI

In 2004, Spain started creating the Spanish CCI with the Instituto de Crédito Oficial (ICO) basing its calculation on the methodology of Michigan and the USA Conference Board.

January 2008: Gallup Started Asking Component Questions Daily

Since January 2008, Gallup has daily asked the component questions to measure Americans’ confidence in national economic conditions.

April 2008: Nielsen Global Online Consumer Survey

In April 2008, the Nielsen Global Online Consumer Survey included responses from 28,153 online users.

2009: Gallup Collected Global Economic Confidence Data

In 2009, Gallup collected global economic confidence data through its Gallup World Poll.

November 2011: Centro De Investigaciones Sociológicas (CIS) is responsible for publication of Spanish CCI

In November 2011, the Centro De Investigaciones Sociológicas (CIS) took over the responsibility for publishing the Spanish Consumer Confidence Index (CCI).

2011: Bloomberg Licensed the Rights to The ABC News Consumer Comfort Index

In 2011, Bloomberg licensed the rights to "The ABC News Consumer Comfort Index".

2012: Gallup Collected Global Economic Confidence Data

In 2012, Gallup collected global economic confidence data through its Gallup World Poll.

June 12, 2013: Thomson Reuters Provides Early Access to CCI

On June 12, 2013, it was reported by CNBC that Thomson Reuters allowed fee-paying customers access to the Consumer Confidence Index before it was publicly available.

2015: Countries with the Best and Worst Consumer Confidence

In the first quarter of 2015, a survey of 60 countries indicated that India, Indonesia, and the Philippines had the best consumer confidence, while Ukraine, South Korea, and Serbia had the worst.