U.S. Consumer Confidence Drops 6.7 Points as Inflation Fears Rise
The index fell to 81.9 in September, well below the 89 forecast, as concerns about prices and jobs deepened.
U.S. consumer confidence fell sharply in September as rising prices and growing concerns about the labor market darkened household views of the economy and personal finances.
The Consumer Confidence Index dropped 6.7 points to 81.9, missing the 89 forecast. More respondents said their personal finances were bad rather than good, marking the first time that measure has turned negative in the survey’s four-year history.
The Present Situation Index declined 7.9 points to 109.3, while the Expectations Index fell 5.9 points to 63.6. The gap between consumers who viewed jobs as plentiful and those who considered them hard to get narrowed by 2.5 percentage points to 1.7%.
Inflation concerns also intensified. Consumers’ average one-year inflation expectation rose 0.3 percentage points from August to 6.1%, while the median expectation increased to 5.1%.
Separate labor-market data showed U.S. job openings fell by 256,000 in August to 7.08 million. Hires edged higher, while layoffs declined slightly and quits were little changed.
