The Conference Board’s measure of US consumer confidence unexpectedly improved in July to a reading of 51.9 from an upwardly revised 51.0, as Americans anticipate that conditions will get better and as oil and gasoline prices backed off from their record highs toward the end of the month. Indeed, while the “present situation” component slipped to 65.3 from 65.4, the “expectations” component rose to 43.0 from 41.1. However, a further look at the breakdown shows more pessimistic views on employment, as increasing numbers of people have said that jobs are “hard to get” and that in 6 months, fewer jobs will be available. On the other hand, income expectations show that more workers are starting to bet on an increase in income, which may suggest that Americans either want or will be requesting higher wages given the surge in energy and food prices. Nevertheless, it is far too early to call this any notable shift in trend, and if labor market conditions continue to worsen, this will likely weigh on sentiment further. – Terri Belkas, Currency Analyst for DailyFX.com