US consumer sentiment runs lower on dispiriting wage trend

U.S. consumer sentiment slid in May as consumers worried about their future wages, the Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan index of consumer sentiment showed Friday. The preliminary reading of the consumer sentiment, which records the figure for the first half of a month, edged down to 81. 8 in May from 84.1 in the previous month, lower than the market average expectation of 84.5. "The main concern behind the small May loss involved dispiriting trends in wages," said Richard Curtin, director of the survey and economist with the University of Michigan in a statement. The index of current conditions, reflecting Americans' perceptions of their financial situation and whether they consider it a good time to buy big-ticket items like cars, fell to 95.1 from 98.7 last month. The sub-index gauging consumer expectations for six months from now, which more closely projects the direction of consumer spending, declined from 74.7 in April to 73.2 this month.