Strategy in TECH...
Last week, business group The Conference Board released the results for its November Consumer Confidence Index, a survey to gauge how consumers are feeling about the current and near-term future economy. The group reported a significant decline of 6.8 points in consumer confidence, a result that tends to support a similar finding by the University of Michigan Index of Consumer Sentiment, as I previously reported earlier in November.
The internet’s leading streaming guide, JustWatch, has named the top ten most rewatched movies over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. Based on the analysis of data compiled over the last three years, analysts have identified those movies that families return to again and again when they gather for the holiday.
Late last week, the University of Michigan released its widely respected Index of Consumer Sentiment for an initial reading of how consumers were feeling about the state of the economy. It showed a marked drop from both the previous month’s (October) reading and last year’s November 2024 reading. Why the downward dive in sentiment? Most likely, this was due, at least in part, to the ongoing government shutdown (which may be resolved by the time you read this).
In a new survey released today (Thursday), homeowners expressed pessimism and uncertainty about both the economy in general and the housing market specifically. They are also stressing over personal finances, with nearly half of all homeowners (49%) citing their personal finances as the greatest source of stress they face right now.
Yelp, the social media site that was started to help you find the best local Chinese takeout, but now covers a very wide range of interests, such as home improvement, has released a comprehensive report of the latest trends in site user interest. In a report titled 2025 Summer Home & Outdoor Trends, Yelp noted a recent surge in user interest in a wide variety of home remodeling projects, including a huge leap in those making project requests for “home theater installation,” up 562% as compared to 2024.
Beginning in 2021, Nielsen – a global leader in audience measurement – began tracking the share of viewership between legacy linear providers (broadcast and cable) and streaming services. Since the launch of that tracking, streaming has been continually gaining on linear TV. Now, the latest data from Nielsen shows that streaming has overtaken linear TV for the first time in May.
Thanks to the administration’s continued postponement of higher tariffs in international trade, consumer sentiment rebounded in a preliminary June reading. This is the first such improvement in six months as diminished tariff pressure resulted in a more positive consumer outlook.
However, the improved reading is still well below the reading in December 2024.
It was a small thing really. I mean, any decline in revenue is not good, but a 3% decline doesn’t sound particularly troublesome. But when that small 3% revenue decline hit Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH), that slight shudder hit more like an earthquake that had the whole world of luxury shaking. You see LVMH is the world’s most valuable luxury company.
Or, I should say, LVMH was the world’s most valuable luxury company…
The University of Michigan (U of M) has released a preliminary reading of its Index of Consumer Sentiment (ICS) for April and it shows a continuing and startling slide in consumer sentiment, dropping another double-digit percentage from last month’s reading. In fact, this preliminary reading for April is the second-lowest reading in consumer sentiment in the entire 73-year history of the survey!
The latest reading on the current mood of consumers – the Consumer Confidence Index produced by The Conference Board – dropped by 7.2 points in March to a reading of 92.9. This is the fourth consecutive month of decline. The Expectations Index, consumers’ expectations for conditions within the next six months, dropped a startling 9.6 points to 65.2…the lowest level in 12 years.
