Housing wealth, financial wealth and consumption expenditure : the role of consumer confidence

The objective of this paper is to examine the role of consumer confidence on the relationship between two forms of wealth—housing and financial—and four categories of consumption expenditure, which include total consumption, service, durable goods and nondurable goods consumption. This paper uses U.S. quarterly data from 1978 to 2012 for its analysis. Applying the FMOLS estimation method, the results show that consumer confidence has a positive effect on the association between housing wealth and consumption expenditure, whereas its effect on the association between financial wealth and consumption expenditure is negative. The implications of these results are discussed.