The final reading for the September Reuters/Michigan index of consumer sentiment came in at 80.4 compared to a preliminary reading of 78.9 and the August final reading of 74.1. This was the highest reading since March.

Economists had forecast the index to be revised up to 79.

According to the report, the index of the current economic conditions jumped 5.9 percent m-o-m to 87.8 from August’s final reading of 82.9.

Meanwhile, the index of consumer expectations climbed 10.4 percent m-o-m to 75.6 from August’s final reading of 68.5.

Richard Curtin, the Surveys of Consumers chief economist, noted that consumer sentiment continued to improve in late September, mainly due to a more optimistic outlook for the national economy. “While consumers have anticipated gains in the national economy ever since the April shutdown, the September survey recorded a significant increase in the proportion that expected a reestablishment of good times financially in the overall economy. The recent gains are encouraging even though they were largely due to upper income households,” he said.