Michigan consumer confidence rebounds to 54.4, beating expectations; the hard part is that it’s still below last year’s average level. Falling inflation expectations gives the Federal Reserve a bit of relief, but Waller’s tough remarks didn’t push expectations down further—suggesting the market isn’t buying it. More importantly, workers lack leverage: even if inflation rebounds, wages are unlikely to rise much, which undercuts the quality of this recovery.

Coin World news: Analyst Samuel Tombs pointed out that the rise in the University of Michigan consumer confidence index is still below last year’s average level. The indicator increased from 49.5 in June to 54.4, exceeding economists’ expectations of 50.5. Tombs said that falling inflation expectations bring some comfort to the Federal Reserve, but Chair Wash may be disappointed that his tough remarks on inflation have not further pushed expectations lower. In addition, Tombs noted that workers “lack bargaining power,” which means there is little likelihood that a recent overall rebound in inflation will lead to wage growth.