The Determinants of the U.S. Consumer Sentiment: Linear and Nonlinear Models

Marwane El Alaoui, Elie Bouri () and Nehme Azoury
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Marwane El Alaoui: Questrom School of Business—Boston University, 595 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215, USA
Nehme Azoury: USEK Business School, Holy Spirit University of Kaslik, Jounieh, Lebanon

IJFS, 2020, vol. 8, issue 3, 1-13

Abstract: We examined the determinants of the U.S. consumer sentiment by applying linear and nonlinear models. The data are monthly from 2009 to 2019, covering a large set of financial and nonfinancial variables related to the stock market, personal income, confidence, education, environment, sustainability, and innovation freedom. We show that more than 8.3% of the total of eigenvalues deviate from the Random Matrix Theory (RMT) and might contain pertinent information. Results from linear models show that variables related to the stock market, confidence, personal income, and unemployment explain the U.S. consumer sentiment. To capture nonlinearity, we applied the switching regime model and showed a switch towards a more positive sentiment regarding energy efficiency, unemployment rate, student loan, sustainability, and business confidence. We additionally applied the Gradient Descent Algorithm to compare the errors obtained in linear and nonlinear models, and the results imply a better model with a high predictive power.

Keywords: U.S. consumer sentiment; consumer perception; financial markets; cross-correlation; Random Matrix Theory; Switching Regime Regression; Gradient Descent Algorithm (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: F2 F3 F41 F42 G1 G2 G3 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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